Bite Me
by Hi-its-mick3y
Summary: When Eren loses his mother to a vampire attack, he dedicates his life and soul to find the monster that killed her, hell bent on taking him out even if it kills him. Joining Erwin's little group of hunters was never a part of the plan. Nor was falling for Levi. But hey shit happens
1. Chapter 1

My twelfth birthday was when my life went to hell.

As if my life wasn't shitty enough, with my father not in the picture and my mother working two jobs to support me and my sister, the world had decided to smack me across the face with a reality that wasn't even supposed to _exist._

"Eren baby," my mother used to say to me when the shadows in my closet and under the bed were too much to bear. "If there was ever a monster in your room, I'd be right there to protect you."

But how was she supposed to protect me when she couldn't protect herself. Shadows and groaning floorboards in the house were the least of our worries. How were we supposed to know that my running imagination wasn't the only monster out there?

I had been excited. My mother managed to scrounge up enough cash to take Mikasa and I to the amusement park. I had never been and my friends never shut up about it when the topic came up. Being the brat I was I kicked and screamed at my mother to take us. She had pinched my ear in retaliation and dragged me up to my room until I behaved better, but she still ended up taking extra shifts at work because she knew how bad I wanted this.

We never made it, and I never forgave myself for every awful thing I ever told her.

Mikasa and I walked home, kicking a rock back and forth, and talking excitedly about how great was going to be. For once I could finally join my friends and talk about the rides, the ones that scared me the most, instead of sitting back cursing my mom for letting us get so poor. My mother had bathed herself in golden light with the knowledge that we'd be able to make it and I was too caught up in my own greed and selfishness to see what it was costing her. Mikasa and I were ecstatic, though, to go somewhere fun. We never went anywhere those days.

We couldn't stop talking about it. That was until we walked up to our shabby house, seeing the door slightly ajar. Our mouths closed and our eyes widened because that was so unlike mom.

Mikasa had slunk back. She wanted to go to Armin's. She said she had a bad feeling and that we should get out of there. I refused though. Mom never left the door open, she knew what kind of neighborhood we lived in. Maybe someone had broke in. Maybe mom was hurt. I didn't want to leave until I had an explanation over how reckless my mom was being. So I took Mikasa's hand and pulled her through the door.

I couldn't even find the strength to scream.

Mom was on the floor, a man hovering over her, and he was _eating_ her. His mouth was moving around her neck and blood was seeping to the floor and my mother was just _staring._ She was just watching the ceiling, her fingers twitching. She turned a head towards me and her eyes finally cleared when she look at my sister and I.

" _Run_ ," she mouthed.

And then I screamed.

I screamed and screamed as Mikasa pulled me out of the house kicking and reaching back for my mom. I screamed when I saw the man coming out after us. I screamed when he reached towards me with a bloody grin. Red crazed eyes bored into my own and that crooked bloody smile left my blood running cold. Those eyes and that smile would haunt my dreams for years, waking me up in the dead of the night kicking and screaming because _he was right there_. Only he wasn't. He was gone, and he took my moms life with him.

The neighbors were coming out of their house, watching, and it wasn't until a man came out waving a handgun and shouting at the man that he ran. But I couldn't stop screaming. Police cars were arriving and a stretcher brought my mother out to the ambulance. A man in uniform tried to talk to me about what happened, but I couldn't find the strength to open my mouth. I knew if I tried I'd only start screaming again.

Mom was pronounced dead at the scene. They wouldn't let me go to her. They wouldn't let me see her one last time.

Armin came running towards me, crying and clinging to me and trying to say that I'd be okay.

"My grandfather's on your moms will," he tried to explain, his voice thick and shaking. "You can live with us." Like that was what I was worrying about. I could care less about not having a home. My _mother_ was gone. _She_ was my home.

I couldn't tear my eyes off of my house. I couldn't stop thinking about the way my mom looked at us. I couldn't stop seeing her _dying._

My jaw set, and I felt red hot anger boiling inside of me.

"I'll kill him Armin." I whispered angrily. "I'll find him and destroy him."

Mikasa only held my hand tightly, crying beside me.

"Eren," Mikasa whispered. "You're distracted, pay attention."

"Sorry," I muttered under my breath. I reached behind me and pulled out a wooden stake, holding it tightly. I was shaking in anticipation. Maybe this was him. Maybe this was the son of a bitch that killed Mom.

There had been a rush of murderers about ten minutes from where we lived. Our town was a hotspot, crawling with lowlifes that no one would bother looking into when they went missing. It was a perfect place for them to hunt and kill. They came through, stayed a couple of weeks, and then moved on. We slaughtered what we could. I wouldn't stop until I found the one who murdered my mom.

Vampires were tricky though. It's not easy to track down a single one.

We moved up closer to the edge of the factory, following a trail of blood and distant gasping noises. The sounds of suckling and moaning were making me sick. I grimaced, clutching my stake tighter to try and get a hold of myself.

We were too late to actually save anyone at this point, but the least we could do was kill the son of a bitch. I motioned for Mikasa to stay back. She turned her back to me to keep a look out in case there were more hiding out there. I crept forward a little more and peeked into the warehouse, pulling back with a grimace. The girl was definitely dead, possibly even drained, but the monster continued to suck at her skin as if he could get any more out. A newborn probably. They were usually the ones responsible for recklessness like this. No other vampire would choose a spot so surrounded by human population to feed, nor would they be so careless as to leave so much of a mess. An experienced vampire could easily bite a person without killing them in the end. Their saliva has healing properties so it was easy to cover up their tracks after they fed.

A sound of a guttural groan echoed through the air and I turned back towards the vampire in a panic. A stake stuck out of the back of his chest, a small figure standing over him. Before I could get over the shock that someone managed to sneak in without Mikasa realizing, the figure stood up. They stared me down with bright silver eyes, and smirked.

"Too slow."


	2. Chapter 2

Mikasa and I stared at the man in shock. I almost thought he was a kid, no grown man was the short. That is until he stepped into the light and I could see him better. His hair was inky black and falling over his face and despite his size he was definitely not a child. I could see muscles rippling under his shirt so despite being so tiny he was definitely well capable of handling himself, as if him staking a vampire didn't prove that enough. He stared at us blankly.

I snapped my gaping mouth shut and fixed a glare on him. "Who the hell are you?"

The man ignored me and pulled out a cloth from his back pocket. He started wiping at the blood on the stake. " _Fucking filthy."_

"Did you not hear me?" I asked incredulously. "Who are you?"

He raised an thin eyebrow at me, "A hunter, genius."

Mikasa walked up closer to me, "What's your name."

He looked at us both for a minute before responding. "Levi."

"Where'd you come from?" I asked. He couldn't be from the town, we'd have recognized him at least a little bit. Not only that but Mikasa and I were the only hunters within a hundred miles. Whoever he was he was not from here.

"Here, there," he answered cryptically. "Everywhere. Nice to see a couple hunters out here though, this town is a hot spot."

"Why are you here?" I demanded, growing angrier by the second. I was growing tired of his vague answers. From the way Mikasa stood stiff beside me I could tell she was too.

"To hunt vampires, dumbass. Are there more of you out here?"

I looked at Mikasa, trying to gauge her reaction. She kept her face emotionless and calculating. If she decided Levi was a threat in any way she'd let me know. I looked back at Levi, "No. We're the only ones."

He grimaced, "Shit. You're just kids. How long have you been in the business?"

"A while," I answered vaguely. Two could play at this game. If he didn't want to give me straight answers then I wouldn't give any to him.

"How old are you two?"

"Why does it matter?"

He looked at us before shaking his head. "Yeah, you're right. I've seen kids younger than you out hunting anyways."

"Why are you here?" Mikasa spoke up. She took a step closer to me, running a finger across my arm to warn me from getting even angrier. She was unsure of him. I could feel how wary he made her.  
"My group and I are trying to track down a clan," he told us. He turned away and walked back to the vampire, grabbing the corpse by the nape of its neck and hauling it outside the building. "They call themselves the Titans. They're currently responsible for over a hundred murders and the last they were spotted was here in Oregon."

"There were murders in Portland," I told him. "But that's way farther down the coast."

He pulled out a small tin of lighter fluid and started dousing the body. "We know that, we're heading down soon enough but a friend of ours has a house a town over so we figured we'd stay and stake a few monsters while we're here." He lit a match and tossed it on the corpse.

I watched the body start to blacken for a little bit before turning back to him. "You said you had a group?"

"Well, its not technically mine." Levi wiped a hand over his forehead. "It's a friend of mine. He'd actually probably like to meet you."

"We're not going anywhere," Mikasa said.

Levi raised an eyebrow at her, "Do you really think I'm that much of a threat?"

"You managed to sneak in without my sister knowing," I told him. "Of course we're going to think you're a threat."

His face twisted in annoyance. "We're on the same team, kid. Whatever our reasons all of us here are hunting vampires. You don't have to join us if you don't want to, but Erwin's always looking for new recruits."

"Recruits? We're not in any war."

He waved his arms at the burning vampire, "Then what would you call this?"

I grimaced, running a hand through my hair thinking hard. I looked at Mikasa but the look she gave me couldn't tell me anything. I took a deep breath. "Fine. We'll go with you."

He smirked and waved a hand at us, "Alright. Follow me. My van's not too far from here."

I looked at Mikasa and then back at him. "Actually, we'll follow you in our car."

He shrugged, "I'll be waiting for you out by the entrance. Don't make me wait. What are your names?"

"Eren," I responded tersely. "That's my sister Mikasa."

He only nodded at that and walked away.

"I don't trust him," Mikasa said as we climbed into our car.

"I don't either," I told her. "But we might as well check out his group." Other vampire hunters were hard to come across. Mikasa and I were complete amateurs compared to some out there. If we met up with his group we might learn a few things that could keep us alive. I felt like that alone was a good enough reason to follow him.

We followed his van for a little bit, hardly talking. Mikasa was staring at our surroundings, memorizing the twists and turns we made in case we had to book it out of there. We turned into a small town and followed Levi into a residential area. The place was clean. Cleaner than our town, though that wasn't really hard to accomplish. Levi parked out in front of a large white house and we parked beside him. He waited for us at the door.

Levi pulled out a cellphone, waiting patiently for someone to answer before saying. "It's me. I brought some people."

The door opened up and a figure threw itself at Levi.

"Levi!" She shrieked. Glasses fell from her head and to the floor and I quickly picked them up and set them on a small patio chair before she could step on them. "How was the hunt? Did you catch me a vampire?"

"No, and I probably never will," he answered. He made an effort to look annoyed but the fondness in his eyes gave him away. He turned to me, "Before we go in I need to tell you something-."

"Levi."

We turned to the door and immediately Mikasa and I backed up, falling into stance and pulling out our weapons. I should have _known_ this was a bad idea. I regarded the vampire at the door carefully watching for any signs that he might attack. He only stared at us, red eyes peering down, blonde hair practically perfect. He had just fed, vampires only had red eyes when they've bitten someone, and I worried about whatever poor sap he had in there. I watched him carefully not liking how big and bulky he was. I didn't understand why a hunter would take us to a house with a vampire, but everything in me was screaming ' _trap_ '.

"For fucks sake put your weapons down." Levi said exasperated.

"Levi, what the hell is this?!" I demanded.

"You're going to wake up the neighbors." Levi threw his hands up in the air. "Erwin's not the enemy, damn it."

Not the enemy?! "He's a vampire."

"Well shit, really?" Levi rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Put your goddamn weapons down brat, not every vampire out there is as evil as you seem to believe."

"We've had worse reactions," Erwin stated. He opened the door and stepped back inside. "Come in and we'll explain."

I looked at Mikasa and watched as she carefully put her weapon back in the holster. I followed suit refusing to put mine away. Even if f she felt it was safe enough to do so that wasn't good enough for me. I still kept on guard and stayed close to Mikasa. We followed Levi and his friend into the house, tensing up when the door closed behind us.

The house was well lit and incredibly homy. It was nothing like what all the vampires I've come across made their homes to be. I followed everyone into the living room, where a group of people sat watching football on a television.

"Eren, Mikasa," Levi started waving and pointing to everyone. "This is Sasha and Connie. The house is Sasha's but she's kindly let us use it." He pointed to a brunette and a small bald man. They both grinned and waved. "That's Ymir, she's a vampire, and Christa is her girlfriend." I regarded her warily, but she only smirked and waved. She was heavily freckled and taller than Mikasa and I, and her blonde girlfriend was at least half her size. When she saw the way I was staring at her the blonde casually took a step in front of her. I knew that despite her size she wasn't someone I wanted to mess with. "The gross scraggly looking one is Mike, he's Erwin's boyfriend. If he decides to sniff you just let him." The man waved at us before looking back at the TV. I stared at the fading bite mark on his neck and looked back to Erwin, but he chose not to notice me glaring at them. Why someone would willingly let someone bite them was beyond me. Levi pulled the girl currently poking at him out in front of us. "This is Hanji. She think's she's a scientist. Erwin's currently her new test victim. Never ask her to talk about vampires or you'll be here for hours."

Hanji waved excitedly at us and held out a hand. "It's nice to meet you!"

As we shook her hand Levi continued on. "You already met Erwin, so that's everyone."

"I still want an explanation." I told him.

He rolled his eyes in annoyance. "Right, come with us into the kitchen."

When we walked in Erwin immediately took a seat while Levi started digging through the cupboard. He pulled out a small box, set it on the table, before filling up a kettle and putting it on the stove.

"Alright," Levi said, leaning against the counter top. "Take a seat. Do you want me to tell them or should you, Erwin?"

"It'll sound better coming from you."

"Cool, did you want some tea too?" Levi asked as he started pulling out cups. "Eren? Mikasa?"

"Sure," Erwin told him.

Mikasa and I politely declined. I looked at him curiously, trying to figure out how he could drink tea when his diet was supposed to consist of blood. The vampire noticed my stare, "Living off of just blood is impossible, vampires only drink it because the blood in our system becomes poisonous after a while and we need to replace it."

"Alright," Levi started. "Do you know the process of making a vampire, Eren?"

"Um," I frowned, a little unsure of why he was asking. "No."

"It's not a simple thing," Levi began. "Takes the course of about a week I would say. What happens is when vampire decides to turn a human they have to drink from them and then feed their victim their own blood. Its an exchange that usually takes about three days to complete, but about four days afterward for the changes to be complete. A lot of clans are made this way, and not everyone who's changed was willing. Most only stay with their creators because they've created a safe place for them, and where else could they go?" Levi started pulling out tea bags and putting them into the two mugs. "Of course, this can only be done by someone who's been born a vampire."

"Born?" I asked confused.

He raised an eyebrow, "You really know nothing of the creatures you've been hunting, do you?"

"I know enough to know how to take them out," I responded. "That's all I ever needed to know."

Levi grimaced, "Great. We've just got a rampant angst ridden teenager staking whoever he can."

"I'm twenty-two," I corrected.

"And he's drinking too." Levi took a deep breath. "Okay, whatever. Anyways, a lot of vampires honestly aren't bad. They're born into circumstances and a group that hasn't always had a clean reputation and they suffer from it. The vampire council is trying to keep their kind under control but it's hard when you've got gangs constantly created new vampires and killing without any thought to the consequences."  
"There's a council?"

"Shut up kid, I'm trying to talk." Levi pinned me with a glare and I shrunk a little in my seat. "Erwin is unfortunately a victim. He was turned against his will somewhere in the eighteen hundreds. He refused to join the clan that turned him and got away."

"How?"

"I killed them all," Erwin spoke up.

I stared at him shocked as Levi kept talking. "Newborns are incredibly strong and hard to subdue. Their weak point though it's they're not used to their new senses so its easier to sneak up on one. Anyways, Ymir was born a vampire. When you're born you stop aging when you reach your prime. Ymir stopped growing when she turned seventeen. She's here for the same reason we all are, to protect humankind."

It was hard to wrap my brain around. The idea that vampires could actually be working to save humans by hunting their own kind seemed almost impossible to me.

"You look constipated, brat," Levi said. "You okay there?"

I grabbed at my sister's hand, holding it tightly and trying to ground myself. She squeezed it back and shot me a worried look. "I don't know."

"What are you having problems with?" Erwin asked gently.

"How do I know I can trust you?"

"Whatever your reasons for hating my kind," Erwin spoke softly, like he was scared to provoke me. "I'm sure they're reasonable. I used to hate my kind too, until I grew to accept that I couldn't change what we were. I'm not asking you to trust us. On your way here though Levi told me about you two, and we've heard rumors about a couple of hunters in your town. I think you two would make a great addition to our group."

"Why would you want us," Mikasa asked.

"Has Levi talked at all about the Titans?"

"Vaguely," I responded.

Erwin nodded. "They're a band of murderers, but they're not reckless. They believe humans were put on the earth purely for their benefit and they see no problems with enslaving the whole race for their own good. The council has been trying to take them down but they're not easy to completely wipe out. We've been hunting them for the past six months and we could use all the manpower we can get if we're going to wipe them out."

"So you want us."

"They're the greatest threat to humanity as of now," Erwin explained. "You'd be helping a lot of people if you join us. At least think on it."

The tea kettle started screaming, and Levi poured the hot water into the mugs, handing one to Erwin. "I'm going on a hunt in a few days kid. Some vampire's been terrorizing a town about half an hour away. Why don't you join me."

"Mikasa has work."

He waved a hand, "We can survive without your bodygaurd."

Mikasa narrowed her eyes at him, "If you let him get hurt-."

"Don't worry," Levi interrupted. "He's in good hands."

We left after we got everyone's phone number. The car ride was silent, there was too much to think about. The idea that vampires could be good was still hard to imagine. After all the murders and the terror they've caused it seemed to me it was best to just wipe them all out. I didn't trust Erwin, and I didn't trust Ymir. I didn't trust anyone who would side with a vampire either.

Neither Mikasa or I talked until we walked into our home.

"Are you going to go with Levi?" my sister asked.

I paused in the entryway. "I don't know. I think so."

"Do you think we should join?"

"Do you?"

She looked away, thinking hard, before speaking up again. "I don't think it's a bad idea. I'm not sure I like Levi though."

"Yeah, well, that makes two of us." I admitted.

I went up to my bedroom and grabbed my ipod from my desk. I layed in bed with music blasting through my ears and closed my eyes, but I knew I wasn't going to be getting any sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

I'm not entirely sure how I expected my day to go but it sure as hell did not start off with a bag of donuts being tossed on my face.

"Get your ass up, kid," Levi said, staring at me disgusted as I sat up and sputtered in shock. It took me a moment to realize he was looking at the drool caked to my mouth. I wiped it off embarrassed, my face flushing.

"What time is it?" I asked. "Why are you even here?

"Three in the afternoon," he told me. "Erwin sent me with donuts. He's trying to sweeten you up. If I were you I'd milk it. I brought beer."

At the promise of alcohol I dragged myself out of bed and followed him into the living room, bag of donuts in hand. I rubbed my face trying to wake myself up. I went to take a donut from the bag but Levi snatched it from me and rifled around until he came up with a chocolate donut. With a grunt of approval he shoved the bag back at me and turned to our refrigerator. I stared at him with my mouth wide open. What the hell?

"What are you doing?" Mikasa asked, eyes narrowed at him and watching his every movement.

"Finding real food." Levi told her. "If I eat just the donut it'll make me sick. Do you guys have anything other then frozen dinners?"

"They're cheap," I mumbled, a little annoyed with him. He had absolutely no common curtesy. I ran a hand over my face in frustration. "You said you brought beer?"

"I set it by your couch," he said. He pulled out an apple and frozen mac n' cheese. "Have at it."

Mikasa glared at him as he put the frozen dinner in the microwave. I just turned around and headed towards the couch choosing to ignore him for the time being. I popped open a beer and turned on the TV.

"Not going to eat a donut?" Levi asked, dropped down next to me. I moved a little farther away from him disguising it as just readjusting my position.

"Not hungry," I told him honestly.

"Are you not a morning person?"

Not when woken up so rudely. "You could say that."

He hummed and started eating his mac n' cheese. "This place is filthy."

"We're have bigger things to worry about other than the mess," I responded. That actually wasn't far from the truth. Mikasa picked up a lot when she could but since I lost my job the mess has just been getting worse and jobs weren't exactly plentiful in the town.

"I have to go to work," Mikasa said. She ruffled my hair on her way out and I watched forlornly as she closed the door. Great, now I'm left to deal with Levi on my own.

"So, brat," Levi started. "How'd you get in the business?"

"That's a little personal," I mumbled.

"You don't have to give me the gory details, I'm just curious."

I rolled my shoulders and grimaced. "Came home one day to find one drinking from my mother. It killed her, so now I'm looking for it."

"How old were you?" He asked.

"Twelve."

He looked at me for a moment with something that, had I believed he was capable of it, I could only describe as empathy before averting his eyes. "Rough."

There was a knock at my door before I could ask him about why he was out hunting too. I looked over as it as it opened, "Eren? I brought pizza."

I vaulted over the top of the couch excited, "Armin!"

I grabbed the pizza from him feeling my stomach grumble at the smell of it. Suddenly I found myself absolutely starving and moaned as I breathed in deeply.

Armin grinned at me. "Hi!" He looked over to the couch where Levi regarded him carefully. "Who's this?"

"No one," I answered at the same time Levi said. "A friend." I scowled at him but he just looked at me with amusement.

Armin looked between us confused before nodded slowly, "Okay?"

I motioned with my head for him to join us on the couch. I put the pizza down on the table and grabbed a piece shoving it into my mouth. I didn't bother with table manners hoping that maybe it would be enough to chase Levi away.

"Long time, no see, Mini," I said around a mouthful of food. Levi hissed in disgust and scooted a little farther from me. Good.

"Grandpa's grave was vandalized," Armin shrugged. "So I've been spending most of my time at the police station and cleaning it up. Mikasa at work?"

I nodded, "Yep. You should have told me. I could have come down and helped."

He waved a hand at me before grabbing a piece of pizza. "It's okay, it happens. If it was more than I could handle I would have called you." Armin looked at Levi carefully, "I've never seen you around."

"I'm just passing through," Levi shrugged.

"And you know Eren how?"

"I'm a cousin of Mikasa's." Levi explained, the lie rolling off his tongue without any hesitation like it just came natural to him. As if I wasn't wary around him already.

Armin nodded, still suspicious. "Anyways, Eren, would you mind if I crashed here for tonight? I'd really rather not go back home. I've been cooped up for too long."

I nodded, "Yeah! That would be great!"

He smiled wide, "Cool."

Levi looked at his phone before cursing. "Crap, I need to go. Erwin needs me." He rushed out of the house, Armin barely managing a goodbye before he was out the door.

"He's… strange," Armin said quietly.

"He's a pain in my ass," I corrected him, shaking me head.

Armin just laughed, "I brought Mario Smash Brothers, want to play?"  
My eyes widened, "Oh hell yeah!"


	4. Chapter 4

Levi picked me up at my house just as the sun started setting. I met him outside with a few stakes at my waist and a grimace on my face. Murders a few towns over have spiked within the last couple of days and if I hadn't already been planning on going out with Levi I would have been down there days ago. We should have been down there days ago. Erwin claimed that it was too risky, that we had to wait, but waiting meant more people died. Vampire's only needed to feed once a week and this one was killing every night.

"We should have been down there sooner," I told Levi as I climbed into the car.

"I know," Levi muttered, backing out of the driveway. "Trust me, but what Erwin says goes. He's been around long enough to know when it's safest to strike."

"You trust him a lot," I muttered.

"He saved my life," Levi shrugged. "I owe him everything I am."

I looked at him curiously at that before he turned on the radio trying to keep the car ride from being so silent. I don't know what I expected but Sum 41 was not it. I didn't complain though. I tapped my finger on my thigh to the beat and looked out the window.

Levi's phone chimed and he pulled it from his pocket. "Hanji found where it is."

"And that would be?" I inquired.

"The Elementary school," he sucked his teeth in disgust. "Fuck, what a scumbag."

I groaned and rubbed at my head, "Let's get this done and over with."

He flashed me a disinterested look, "Not excited?"

"You could say that."

We pulled up to the school, parking in the back. It was a huge rundown building from what I could tell in the dark, brick cracking and windows covered in dirt. I frowned at it. Kid's shouldn't be taught here, though my own elementary school wasn't any better.

"Hanji thinks it's in the basement." Levi told me as we crept towards it. "Mike tracked it down, it apparently just fed. We need to be extra careful."

"I'm not an idiot," I muttered.

"Yes," he looked at me without any amusement in his face. "You are."

I grit my teeth and followed after him. We walked down the hallways carefully, both of us barefoot to keep as quiet as possible. The shadows seemed to be reaching out for us and for a moment I was a child again, terrified of the dark under my bed. I shook my head and ran a hand over the goose bumps on my arm. We got to the door to the basement and I jiggled it carefully. It swung open and I looked at Levi with a raised eyebrow. The door should have been locked. The vampire was definitely down here.

Levi put a finger to his mouth to remind me to keep quiet before handing me a flashlight. He made a motion across his neck and I took it as a sign to not turn it on before we got to the bottom. We crept down the stairs slowly trying to make as little noise as we possible could. The closer we got to the bottom the more impossible it was to see but I didn't dare turn on the flashlight and give ourselves away. I reached the bottom.

And the breath was knocked out of me.

"Eren!"

My feet weren't on the floor anymore. I was flying through the air and I put my hands around my head just in time for me to crash into the wall. Pain exploded through my body and I couldn't even bite back a small shout in shock. I fell to the floor and gasped for breath, reaching for one of the stakes at my side.

The lights flickered on and Iooked up to see the vampire staring down at me. Her red hair fell around her face in waves and bright red eyes stared down at me. I grimaced. Vampires were even stronger after they had fed and I wasn't looking forward to how tough it was going to be to stake her. She grinned, "I was expecting you a little earlier than this."

I narrowed my eyes, "Well I'm here now."

I tried to roll out of the way as she reached for me, but I wasn't fast enough. She grabbed me by the neck and through me at a desk, the wood splintering and breaking underneath me at the force. I couldn't get a decent breath and it felt like one of my ribs had cracked for sure. The pain in my side made it almost impossible for me to focus.

I saw Levi from the corner of my eye, almost just a blur. He went to stake the vampire but she moved before it could hit her heart and instead he got her in the shoulder. She howled in pain grabbing the base of the wood and pulling it out.

Levi pulled another one out, keeping a keen eye on her as they circled. I heaved myself up and reached for another stake, my last one, and tried to take a step only for one of my legs to buckle underneath me. I cursed. There was a deep cut running down the length of my leg, starting from the inside of my knee and ending just above my foot. I was bleeding bad.

And the vampire could smell it.

She glanced at me with a rabid smile, distracted enough by the scent for Levi to lunge at her, hitting her right in the heart. Her eyes went wide and she choked, sinking to her knees and staring at the stake protruding from her chest.

Then she laughed, blood splattering from her lips, and looked at me. "You mom's murderer says hi, by the way." Before her eyes rolled into the back of her head and she slumped to the floor.

I couldn't move. I just stared at her in shock trying to process what she had said to me. It didn't make sense. How could she know him? How could she know me? It shook me to the core and my body grew cold with fear.

Levi set her body on fire. I watched her corpse disintegrate and the flames slowly burn out. She knew the monster who killed my mom, and he still remembered me. He knew who I was and what I was doing. He was watching me. Dread made it hard to breathe and I couldn't find the strength to even move.

That monster was watching me.

Levi grabbed my arm and hauled me up, "Come on, kid. Hang on to me. We're getting out of here."

I didn't say anything on the ride home, just kept my shirt pressed against the gash on my leg trying to slow down the bleeding. Levi helped me into my house and I directed him towards the bathroom. He hauled me up and put me on the counter before grabbing the first aid kit.

"I can take care of it myself," I muttered, leaning my head against the cool mirror. It felt good on my sweaty forehead.

He raised a thin eyebrow at me. "Kid, you look like you're about to pass out. I'm taking care of it this time. You have sutures in here?"

I nodded and shuffled around a bit to get more comfortable. I gritted my teeth as he cleaned it out trying hard not to focus too much on how much it hurt. I couldn't help but groan in pain when he wiped it down with an alcohol wipe.

"Don't be a baby," he muttered. He started stitching me up then. I kept my mouth shut tight until he was done.

"I think my ribs cracked," I told him.

His fingers reached for my shirt, pulling it up to look at the bruising skin. He trailed his hands over it gently, poking and prodding before he nodded. "Its okay, just a fracture. It should heal fine."

"You have experience with this?"

He only rolled his eyes, "I have to."

I couldn't argue with that.

"Hey, Levi?" I looked down at him. "I think you kind of saved my life. So thanks."

He just shook his head, "Well the only reason I was able to stake her without getting hurt is because of your bleeding leg distracting her, so if anything I should be thanking you."

I laughed a little, "For getting hurt?"

He smirked at me. "For being an idiot."

I kicked at him with my good leg, "Shut up, asshole."

"Bite me, Jaeger."

It was then that I realized just what kind of position we were in, with him between my legs like that. I blame the fact that I hadn't gotten off in a week, and that I haven't actually had sex with someone since Armin and I got drunk and did it back in highschool. I could feel my pants tighten up and I hoped to god that Levi wouldn't notice.

But he did.

His eyes lowered back down to check my cut and when he went to look back up they stopped at my crotch. My face started burning and I wanted nothing more than for the world to just swallow me up right then. Levi was attractive, I couldn't deny that, but he was also insufferable and I didn't want to get hard because of him. He looked back at me with a small smirk and amusement written all over his features. He didn't say anything thank god, but then his hand started trailing up my good leg, fingers slowly moving underneath the hem of my boxer briefs and suddenly I couldn't breathe. His eyes never left mine, burning straight into me in a way that made my chest ache with need and my stomach tighten with excitement.

There was a knock at the bathroom door, startling both of us out of whatever… whatever that was.

"Eren?" Mikasa called out. "Are you in here?"

I ran a hand down my face and Levi stood up and away from me. "Yeah."

"Is Levi here?"

"He's in here with me, I got a little hurt."

Thank god I was no longer hard because she barged in then, eyes wide with worry. "What? What happened?"

I held up my hands. "It's okay. It's already been taken care of. Look!" I didn't dare mention my cracked rib because she would for sure try to decapitate Levi over that.

I twisted my leg so she could see the inside of it. She checked it over carefully before nodding with approval. She turned to Levi with a glare. "How did this happen?"

"It wasn't his fault," I told her. "We were caught by surprise. I'm okay, really."

She stared at me for a moment before nodding. "Okay… Okay. You need to get to bed though, you're face is flushed. Are you feeling okay?" She put a hand to my forehead.

I pushed her hand off of me, "I feel fine!"

Levi started washing his hands in the sink next to me, "Well, I'm off. I'll see you two later." He stared at me, for a moment longer then he had to and my stomach fluttered nervously. "Take care of that leg, brat."

I nodded, and watched as he left the bathroom.


	5. Chapter 5

It took me a week and a half before I could walk like a somewhat normal person. My leg was still healing and it honestly looked gross as hell but I've had enough battle wounds to know that it was healing okay. I took the stitches out as soon as I could because I kept catching them on everything and it was just getting ridiculous. Armin and Mikasa kept me company, helping me get around the house and bringing me food. I've never been so grateful to Armin for sneaking me ice cream and pizza. Frozen dinners can only be tolerated for so long.

Levi never texted me, or showed up, and honestly I was kind of okay with that. With what happened in the bathroom I needed all the time I could get to think about it and figure out what the hell could have caused my lapse in judgement. It had to be the lack of sex I've had in a while. I couldn't think of any other reason as to why I'd react like that around him. Levi was an asshole. He may be hot, in an almost intimidatingly way, but he was still a dick. No amount of sexy smirking could change that.

My brain kept running through what the vampire told me before she died, too. Erwin had sent Mike to scope out my neighborhood after I told him about it but he found nothing. It didn't stop me from worrying. He knew who I was, he remembered me, and he was keeping tabs on me. That kept me and Mikasa on edge. We kept the doors and windows locked up tight but that would only be able to do so much. A simple door couldn't keep a vampire out if it really wanted to get to us.

Nothing ever happened. No one showed up. No one tried to drink our blood. I wanted to relax because maybe she was just trying to freak me out. I mean it's not news around here that my mother was murdered so maybe she'd found out and tried to use it against me.

It didn't calm my nerves.

I groaned and ran a hand down my face, before pulling out my phone to text Armin. I had been cooped up long enough and sitting here being anxious about it wouldn't help me.

 _To Armin: Want to go get coffee? I need to get out of the house._

I tapped my fingers against my thigh and waited for a reply. My phone beeped a few minutes later.

 _From Armin: Can your leg handle it?_

 _To Armin: My leg is fine. Meet you at Starbucks?_

 _From Armin: On my way._

I grinned and put my phone into my pocket, digging around in my dresser for a shirt and pulling on the first one that smelled somewhat clean. Mikasa was already at work and having the house to myself was nerve wracking so I was glad to finally be able to get out.

I limped into starbucks and saw Armin at a table, waving me over and holding up two cups of coffee. I sat down across from him and he handed me one of them.

"I got you your usual," He told me smiling. "How's your leg?"  
"Its good," I told him, "It's healing well enough."

He nodded, stirring his coffee with his straw. "You've never mentioned how you got it."

I shrugged trying to ignore the way he was looking at me. Armin was smart, too smart for his good, and he had a way of reading people that made me nervous. "It wasn't really important, just me being stupid."

Armin narrowed his eyes at me. "Eren, you had stitches."

"I tripped," I lied. "I was holding a glass cup and landed on some of the shards when it broke."

"Eren, you're a terrible liar."

I groaned, laying my head on the table. "Armin, please. It's not important."

"You're never been the same since your mom was killed," Armin started. "You're always getting hurt and you always lie about how and you're always disappearing. Sometimes I don't hear from you for weeks. You worry me."

"Armin, I'm okay," I pleaded with my eyes for him to stop talking about it. "It's okay."

"You have to tell me what's going on someday you know," Armin sipped at his coffee.

"There's nothing going on," I lied.

He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. "Whatever, okay."

I hated having to lie to him. I hated that he knew I lied to him. I didn't want to bring Armin into this world though. He didn't belong. There were nightmares out there that he didn't need to worry about and I wanted to make sure he never would. He deserved so much better than the life I was involved in. He wasn't strong enough to deal with it. Mentally and emotionally, yes. Sometimes he was strong that it almost scared me how quickly he was able to bounce back. Physically though, no. He wouldn't stand a chance. He'd get eaten alive in the most literal sense.

Armin sighed. "I'm going to be finishing my associates soon. I was thinking about going out of state to get my next degree."

I straightened up in my seat, "Really? Where?"

"I'm stuck between a college in California and one in Washington. I don't want to go too far from home, you know? Grandpa's grave is here and I need to make sure it stays in good shape. Plus there's you and Mikasa and…." He trailed off, worrying his bottom lip between his teeth. He wanted approval. That much I could tell. While I was worried about not seeing him as often the thought of him getting out of this god forsaken town excited me.

"That would be so cool," I told him smiling wide, "I know you've been wanting to get out of this town for quite a while."

He nodded and smiled back at me. "This place is only dragging me down and I know I can do better."

He went on to explain about colleges and I listened carefully. Armin was talking about getting into journalism when I noticed someone staring at us from the corner of my eye, but when I looked no one was there. Goosebumps rose at the back of my neck and I runned at them nervously.

Mike already checked, there's no one around, I told myself. I was just worrying too much and over thinking things. I had been locked in the house with nothing but anxious thoughts for so long they were messing with my head even now.

"Text me more often," Armin told me as we exited the shop. "I worry about you, you know?"

I nodded and ruffled his hair, "Okay I will."

"I wish you wouldn't do that," Armin grumbled trying to fix it.

I just laughed, "I'll see you some other time, Armin. Later!"

He waved and grinned, "Bye!"

I got a call from Hanji on my way back home, and it took a moment before I was actually able to understand what she was saying. She had a way of talking so fast that all her words just melded together.

"I think I found a way to prevent vampires from burning in the sun," she babbled on excitedly. "You need to come over and see, please? Oh please, Eren, please?"

I just laughed, "Alright, I'll head over."

"Make sure you call when you're here so we can let you in!"

When I was finally over there Haji was practically vibrating with excitement. She dragged me over to the kitchen where Erwin was seated, staring at a cup of something gooey in a cup with apprehension. I went to go look at it only to take a couple steps back. Whatever was in there didn't smell all too great, like the smell of sour milk and rotting meat. Erwin looked at me with a look I could only describe as pleading.

I never thought I'd feel bad for a vampire, but I could help but pity him as I looked back down to the mixture in the cup.

"Have you ever seen a vampire burn in the sun?" Hanji asked me excitedly.

"Um, no," I answered truthfully, looking up to her.

Her eyes beamed at my answer. "Its disgusting. It's like a sunburn only a hundred times worse. Come on, Erwin! I want to show him."

Erwin didn't bother trying to argue, only standing up and letting her lead him the the window.

"Watch this," Hanji grinned, and she took Erwin's hand and pulled it into a beam of sunshine.

Immediately his hand started turning red, sizzling as blisters started popping up. The smell of burning flesh filled the house but at this point in my life it wasn't something I even grimaced at. Erwin didn't even flinch. Hanji let go of his hand with a giggle and ran back to the table, digging around in a bag before pulling out a bottle of cream. She tossed it to Erwin who immediately started applying it to the burn.

"So they don't really turn to ash," Hanji started explaining to me. I sat down next to her as she continued talking. "They just get some serious sunburn. They're skin is too sensitive to the sun. The problem is they're stronger during the daytime, though I still don't know why."

"I know," I told her. "Mikasa and I figured that out through trial and error."

"I think it might be the moon," Hanji told me. "Erwin is especially weaker during a full one so I'm almost sure it is, but I'll need to run a few more tests."

"So what's with the stuff in the cup?" I asked motioning to it before she could go on another tangent. That was something I'd learned the hard way after asking curiously about her experiments with Erwin. She'd kept me up until seven the next morning and only stopped when Levi decided to intervene.

Her eyes lit up, "Oh! That's something I came up with. I think I've finally pinpointed the right ingredients make vampires more sun resistant so they don't burn." She looked at Erwin, who was bandaging his hand up. "Go one, eyebrows, drink it!"

I raised an eyebrow at the nickname.

Erwin grimaced but did as he was told, swallowing the substance with one gulp. His face screwed up in disgust and he carefully placed the cup down. "I don't think being sun resistant is worth the taste of that."

Levi walked into the kitchen then, eyes avoiding me, "Hanji, not again." I tried not to let that get to me. If he wanted to ignore me then fine.

"I think I got it this time," She said excitedly.

He looked at her unimpressed. "That's what you said last time.

"How long will it take for this to kick in?" I asked, and Levi finally glanced at me. I found myself slightly elated that he actually acknowledged my existence before I could stop myself.

 _No, he's an asshole. Stop that._

"Hopefully, only a few more minutes," Hanji told me. She motioned Levi over. "Why don't you join us, shortstack?"

He narrowed his eyes at her, "I'm actually going to the store with Christa. So I'll see you later." He didn't even look at me as he left.

I tried not to take that personally.

Hanji clapped her hands together, "Alright! It should have probably kicked in now. Erwin, put your other hand in the sun."

We walked back over the window and watched as Erwin gingerly put it in front of the light shining through. But nothing happened. No burning, no bubbling, no disgusting smell. I could only stare in awe at the unblemished skin. Hanji started hooting and hollering, dancing around and jumping up and down. Erwin stared at his hand in shock, turning it over and over in the sun.

"Oh my god," I mumbled. "How long will it last?"

Hanji stopped shouting, "Oh, I don't know. We'll have to see. Come on Erwin! Lets go outside."

"I can go outside," Erwin whispered softly, almost in wonder.

Hanji smiled at him, "Yes you can, big guy. Come on."

I watched them walked out onto the patio, Erwin stepped cautiously out into the sun with Mike at his side holding his hand. I watched from behind the glass door with a smile on my face. I still had a hard time believing that Erwin could be one of the good guys. Looking at his face though, the way it lit up and the grin that spread across from it as he stepped closer to wrap his arms around Mike, I found myself believing that he could be. Right now he just seemed so _human._ I couldn't help but be happy for him.

My phone buzzed in my pocket and I pulled it out.

"Mikasa?"

"Eren," her voice was urgent and immediately I was snapped out of my daze. "Armin called me. He's in trouble. I don't know where he is or what happened but-."

"Wait," I stopped her. "How do you know?"

"He was screaming," I could hear the tears in her voice. "He was screaming, Eren. He was calling for help and shouting my name. Someone took his phone and," she went quiet, like she couldn't bare to say it.

"Mikasa, what happened," I demanded. My fingers shook around the phone.

"He said," she took a shaky breath. "He said if you and Levi don't meet with him, he's going to kill Armin."


	6. Chapter 6

Everyone was in a rush. Christa and Levi had come home early after hearing what had happened. Mikasa and I were sitting on the couch, our hands holding tightly as if one of us would disappear too.

Mikasa was a mess. She was pale and shaking and her hand was sweating in mine. Her eyes darted around frantically as she watched everyone move frantically but I felt like she wasn't really seeing them. Her mind was too far elsewhere to really take in what she was seeing. She chewed on her nails and I reached over, my own hand shaking, to pull her hand from her mouth. I held it tight and tried to ignore the way the tips of her fingers bled.

I knew I wasn't any better off. My leg was bouncing up and down a hundred miles an hour. I saw Armin today, we hung out, and suddenly he was in danger and it was all because of _me._ I was the reason he was in trouble. I was the reason he's probably scared out of his mind.

I tried hard not to think of what the vampire could be doing to him. _Vampire._ That had to be who it was. Who else would have it out for us? All I could see was Armin shaking like a leaf, fangs in his neck, and red eyes peering up. I couldn't stop thinking about the way the life would literally drain out of him. I kept imagining him crying the way he did when he was younger and was getting picked on. I kept seeing him reaching out for me for help.

I couldn't stop crying.

Erwin was ordering everyone around, trying to settle us down so we could talk about it. When everyone had finally calmed down enough to be quiet Erwin turned to Mikasa.

"What exactly did they say," he asked her.

Her hand tightened around mine. "All he said was that he wanted Levi and Eren to meet him at ten in the afternoon tomorrow at the elementary. He said if they didn't show up he'd kill Armin and take someone else."

Erwin ran a hand down his face, "This Armin is important to you?"

"He's family," I told him.

"Alright," he muttered. "Okay. Levi and Eren, you'll meet with them tomorrow, but you're not going alone. We'll be close by to wipe them out as soon as Armin is out of there. For now there's nothing we can do-."

"Like hell there's not," I interrupted, standing up and clenching my hands. "I need to get Armin out of there! We need to go tonight!"

"Eren, I know you're upset-."

"What if they're lying!" I shouted. "What if he's already dead!"

Levi stood up himself. He took a step closer to me, like he was scared I'd fly off the handle and attack someone. "Eren, sit down."

I couldn't. I couldn't sit down when my best friend could be dying. I couldn't sit down when they could be using him to feed. I couldn't sit down when there could be vampires surrounding him, hurting him, laughing when he cried. He was a monster. He wouldn't go easy on Armin.

"We need to get to him before it's too late!" Tears were running down my face steadily. I couldn't get them to stop.

My world spun and my cheek started stinging, and it took me a moment to realize Mikasa had slapped me. I looked at her shocked, hurt.

"Eren," she spoke softly, holding my face in her hands. "Erwin's right. It's too risky to go now. Our best chance is to do what they want until we have Armin back. He'll be okay." Didn't she understand? Armin needed us….

She wiped at my face and I didn't have the strength to push her away. I slumped against her, wrapping my arms around her and burying my face into her shoulder. I was openly sobbing now but I really didn't care who all saw. My family was being ripped from me again and there was nothing I could do for now. It was killing me.

Especially because it was all my fault he got kidnapped in the first place.

I knew there was something wrong. I should have never let Armin go home alone. I should have kept him with me when I thought someone was watching us. Anxiety over being cooped up too long be damned I should have learned by now to trust my instincts no matter what they told me. I should have never left him out of my sight.

This is all my _fault._

Everyone went to bed, but I knew I wouldn't be able to sleep. Mikasa cried until she couldn't keep her eyes open anymore and I waited patiently for everyone else to fall asleep too. I had to go after Armin, by myself because it seemed that no one else was going to help me. I heard soft footsteps and looked up to see Levi coming towards me.

"Eren," Levi sat next to me. "I need you to promise something."

I couldn't even look at him, just kept staring at the wall.

"Don't go after Armin without us," Levi continued. "I mean it. You'll get yourself killed and this group could really use you."

When I didn't respond he grabbed my chin and turned me towards him. He looked into my eyes searching, for what I wasn't sure. Maybe he was trying to see if I was still here at all. His eyes softened."Are you listening to me?"

"Yeah," I whispered.

"Promise me if I go to sleep tonight you'll be here in the morning." Why did he care?

"I will," I lied. "I promise."

Levi left then, and I waited another two hours before I got off the couch. I wasn't going to risk losing Armin by waiting too long. I pulled on my jacket and grabbed my keys before sneaking out the door quietly, suddenly really thankful that vampires could sleep otherwise I'd never be able to get passed Erwin or Ymir. I started up my car and began driving, my leg shaking with nervousness.

I was terrified I'd be too late.

The car ride took forever. Time passed by slowly leaving me anxious and tearful. I went over the speed limit but I still couldn't seem to get there fast enough. I knew I was being reckless but I didn't know what else to be right now. Caution be damned I had to save Armin no matter what.

I turned off my headlights as I pulled up to the school. I parked in front and pulled out a couple stakes from the dashboard cubby, sticking one in the back of my pants and gripping the other tightly. I walked in as quietly and quickly as possible, leaving my shoes at the door so I could pad along quietly. I couldn't risk being caught so early. I came up to the basement door and took a deep breath before opening it and walking down.

The lights were already on and that set me on edge, but it looked as if no one was around. I looked around carefully looking for any sign that the vampire might be hiding somewhere. I couldn't see anything. Maybe he was out hunting, but I doubted that. After giving away the location of where he'd be with Armin he wouldn't be so stupid to leave to feed when he could just use Armin. That meant I only had so much time….

I heard whimpering and turned towards the sound, the stake in my hands falling to the ground with a clatter.

"Armin," I breathed.

I picked the stake back up and ran to him, quickly starting to undo the ropes around him. I wished I had a knife on me so I could just cut them off from him but I hadn't bothered to grab one before I left the house. There was already so much to do. He struggled panicked and it took me a moment to realize he didn't know what was going on. He had a gag in his mouth and a blindfold over his eyes so for all he knew I could have been the monster that kidnapped him. He whimpered into his gag, and I paused to pull the cloth from his eyes off so he could see that it was me. I pulled the cloth out from his mouth too and he started talking in a rush.

"Eren, what's happening? Who was that?" His mouth was running a hundred miles an hour and I shushed him quickly. I pressed my hand to his mouth for a moment before releasing when he nodded to tell me he would be quiet.

"It's okay, Armin." I told him. "I'm going to get you out of here.

He smiled at me in relief and he let his eyes fall shut, "Be careful, he could be anywhere around here. You need to tell me who he is when we get back."

I only nodded, grimacing. I hoped to god he didn't know what kind of a person, or lack of, he was.

Armin's eyes focused on something behind me, growing wide with fear. "Eren, _watch out_!"

The back of my head exploded in pain and everything went dark.


	7. Chapter 7

I woke up to the sound of Armin sobbing and the feeling of arms around me. I opened my eyes slowly, grateful that the lighting was dim because my head was already aching so bad already. I groaned in pain and closed my eyes again, feeling my stomach churn, before looking back at him. His face immediately relaxed in relief when he saw that I was awake. I moaned softly and rolled over, heaving. Armin rubbed my back as I puked. Fuck, my _head…._

I shakily sat back up, leaning heavily on my best friend. Armin looked down at me, fingers moving around my head to check it and a small smile on his face. "You're okay. Shit, thank god you're okay." I stared at the tear tracks on his face, leaving trails in the dirt and grime on his cheeks. He still found the strength to smile at me despite how scared he must have been.

I looked around before sitting up quickly. My head swam and I fought the way my vision turned black around the edges. I couldn't pass out again now.

We weren't in the school anymore that much was for sure. We were in a cage. A single light bulb hung from the ceiling of whatever room we were in illuminating a small desk outside of where Armin and I were trapped and a metal door. The ground was dirt and stained dark in spots and I had to stop myself from thinking too hard about what it could have been. I stood up on shaky legs ignoring Armin's cries of protest when I stumbled. I walked over to the door of our cage, jiggling it violently before cursing. We were stuck and I had no idea how to even begin to pick locks.

"They moved us," Armin told me softly. "I don't know where."

I looked at him, "Are you okay? Has he bitten you?"

He looked at me strangely, cocking his head confused, "Bitten?"

I sighed in relief. That was one less thing I could worry about. If I could get us out of here in time I could lie to him, make up a story and get him out of this world before it was too late.

"You're awake then."

I cursed myself for not hearing the door open, but with my head still throbbing and my ears ringing I couldn't find it in myself to be surprised I didn't. I turned around to see a man standing in front of the cage, a gross smile plastered on his face. His hair was dark and spiked and brown eyes peered at me. He had the same beautiful quality that every other vampire had but with the way he smiled it just further upset my nerves. He was smiling like he hadn't smiled in years, like he didn't know how to, and it set me on edge. The only thing that had me a little more calm was that his eyes weren't red, so he hadn't fed recently, which meant he'd be easier to take down. I reached into the back of my waistband praying to whatever god that the stake I had put there was still there.

It wasn't.

We were fucked.

"I have to admit, I was expecting an attack sooner than what I had planned for us. I just didn't expect you to come alone. Where's the short one? The one that was with you when you killed my mate?"

I narrowed my eyes, it finally clicking why he wanted me and Levi so badly. Him kidnapping Armin, demanding for me and Levi, it was all for revenge. He wanted to get back at us for killing off his mate and how I wasn't sure I wanted to find out. Whatever sick plans he might have made had my stomach clenching at the thought. What if they involved Armin? I stepped back towards my bestfriend, keeping myself right in front of him. The stains on the floor came back to mind and my fingers started shaking.

The monster only laughed, "Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt him. I only wanted you and the other one. I'm quite disappointed that he's not with you. Unfortunately because you showed up we had to move. I can't have your little group finding us before I'm done with you."

"You aren't going to touch me." I growled.

He only shrugged. "It's not your choice really."

He opened the door and walked in, blocking the way out. There was no way I could take him on without a weapon. Armin whimpered behind me and I crowned him again the edge of the cage. I needed to keep him as far away from the vampire as I possibly could.

"If you don't want me to kill the blond I suggest you come here," the vampire said.

I ground my teeth and took a couple steps closer to him. Armin grabbed at me with a fearful cry and I gently shook him off before walking closer to the vampire. He hummed and walked around me, looking at me up and down as if he were studying me. I felt the skin prickle on the back of my neck and I clenched my fists to try and suppress a shiver.

"I should kill you," he told me, pausing behind me. I stiffened and went to turn around but a hand gripping the back of my neck stopped me. "Ah, ah," he tisked, "Don't move. I wouldn't want to have to break your neck." there was a moment of stiff silence before he continued. "She was my wife, you know. I turned her after our wedding night. We were doing fine, happy, going through humans like the vermin they are. You had to kill her though. Your partner had to shove a stake right through her heart." I felt his breath at the back of my neck and I stopped breathing. "I should kill you, but that would be too easy. I thought of a better way to get back at you." He breathed in deeply, smelling me. I clenched my teeth. "God, you smell delicious. Do you know what the worst thing that can happen to a vampire hunter?" He paused, as if I was going to answer, before continuing. "Becoming the same creature they loathe so much."

Teeth dug into my shoulder and I shouted out, reaching up to pry him off of me. His hands grabbed mine and pinned them behind my back. Adrenaline pumped through me as I desperately fought him, trying to dislodge him from me enough to get him to stop. My mind clouded over with panic. No matter how much I thrashed he was still there. He was still _drinking_ from me. I fell to my knees. My shoulder grew numb. With every gulp of my blood he drank my head got lighter and lighter. I could hear Armin screaming my name. I could hear myself telling him to stay back. I prayed he would listen to me. I hoped to god that maybe the vampire was bluffing and was just going to kill me.

I couldn't become one of them. I didn't want to be a monster.

Suddenly my back was on the ground and he was above me, licking blood from the corner of his mouth. I could dimly hear Armin screaming for him to stop. The vampire bit down on his wrist and leaned down close to me. I couldn't find the strength to lift up my arms to push him away.

 _No. I don't want this._

Fingers pinched my nose and the bleeding wrist was pressed to my gaping mouth. "I won't let you breathe until you drink."

I held out for as long as a could, until my lungs started burning and I was struggling to get free. I would rather suffocate then drink his blood. But as my head got lighter and lighter more of his blood trickled down my throat. I couldn't stop it. I wanted so badly for this to end. I wanted so badly to wring his neck but I couldn't even lift an arm.

" _Please stop_ ," Armin screamed. I glanced over at him, my eyes fluttering closed when exhaustion took over leaving me with the image of him reaching out for me crying.

It haunted me.

This happened a few more times, but I could hardly remember it. I felt like a zombie, like nothing was real. I couldn't move. I couldn't speak. Everything around me blurred and spun. My head was heavy and my body was weak. My thoughts were scattered and I couldn't form a single coherent thought no matter how hard I tried. When the vampire came I let him drink from me. When his bleeding flesh pressed against my mouth I drank so I wouldn't drown in it.

I thought I was dying. I _wished_ I was dying.

"You're okay, Eren," Armin was always next to me, trying to comfort me. I could feel his hands running through my dirty hair and hear him singing softly at times. I could hear the blood rushing through his veins. I could smell it. It was sweet and intoxicating and I wanted it and that _terrified_ me. I was becoming a monster. I was becoming the very thing that killed my mother, the very thing I vowed to wipe from this earth, and there was nothing I could do to stop it.

Armin never left my side, holding on to me and promising that I would make it but didn't _want_ to make it. I didn't want to survive this.

I wanted to die.

* * *

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	8. Chapter 8

Warnings for suicide mention

* * *

When I opened my eyes, my head was swimming, and Armin was right above me.

"Eren," he smiled, "Oh my god you're awake. Are you okay? Can you hear me?"

I could smell him, smell the blood flowing beneath his skin. It was sweet and intoxicating and it made my mouth water. It overpowered me. It took control. It begged for me to take it. I _wanted_ to take it. There was a thirst in my bones that had me feeling sick and pathetic. It had me teeth grinding and my fingers clenching because it hurt so bad.

"Eren?" Armin's voice was drowned out by the sound of his blood pumping in his body. "Talk to me."

I couldn't stop myself from reaching up and grabbing my best friend, biting into his neck. I could hear him choke off a scream. I could feel him struggling against me, but I couldn't stop. I wanted so bad to let him go but I couldn't stop drinking. I swallowed mouthful after mouthful of blood trying to quench this unbelievable thirst. The ache in my bones lessened and I kept drinking, chasing after the sweet flavour that enveloped my senses. I was addicted.

I couldn't stop crying. I was sobbing into him and shaking but no matter how hard I fought with myself I couldn't stop. I was slowly killing my best friend. I was _draining_ the life from him literally and no matter how hard I tried I couldn't find the strength to tear myself away. I cursed him for keeping so close to me. I cursed myself for lacking self control. I whimpered into his neck and let the tears roll freely down my face. And then Armin stopped fighting me. He started running his hands through my hair and telling me it was okay. I was okay.

"It's okay, Eren." He whispered, shaky and weak. "Take what you need."

My eyes fluttered closed, my body still weak, and I fell asleep again.

I woke up again when my head had finally cleared, and my breath was taken away. It was sensory overload. I could see the minute cracks in the ceiling and the individual grains of dirt on the ground when that should haven't been possible. It made my head hurt to see everything so focused, and it didn't help that I could hear _everything._ I could hear the way the ground moved underneath me as I breathed, the distant sound of cars that I knew should have been too far away to even be heard. If I focused, the background noise faded away.

And then all I could hear Armin breathing, shallowly.

Armin was asleep on my stomach, pale with bags underneath his eyes. In a panic I quickly sat up, pressing my fingers to his pulse. It was weak and I found myself terrified that he would die. I had taken too much from him and now he wouldn't recover.

 _I killed him. I killed him, I killed him, I killed-._

"Eren?" Bright blue eyes met mine.

"Oh my god," I breathed. My eyes started tearing up. "Oh my god." Relief crashed over me so hard it knocked the breath out of me.

Armin smiled at me, "Hey. You feel okay?"

You fucking idiot. I drank your blood and you're asking if _I'm_ okay? I wrapped my arms around him, sobbing into his shoulder when the guilt firmly settled itself inside me. My stomach churned and I felt like I might puke. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry. Armin, oh my god."

There weren't enough apologies in the world to fix what I did.

"Eren, it's okay," Armin comforted. He wrapped his arms around me and squeezed me weakly. "I'm okay."

"I'm sorry." I didn't know what else to say.

"Sh," he hushed.

Even if he could forgive me, I wouldn't ever be able to forgive myself. I bit him. I _drank_ from him.

That's when it hit me. The full impact of what had happened, what I had _become,_ slammed into me knocking the breath right out from my chest.

I was a vampire. I was the exact thing I hated. I was the exact thing I _hunted down._

I couldn't stop crying. I was a monster. I couldn't live like this. I couldn't live knowing I had to hurt people to just _survive._ I would have to do exactly what I did to Armin. I would have to drain the life out of someone. Even if I could do it and not kill them the thought that I had would eat me alive. I couldn't _do this._

I had to go. I had to die. I wanted nothing more in the world then to just be killed. Levi and Mikasa would come for me soon. Levi could do it then. He could kill me and then everything would be okay.

"Welcome to your new life," the monster outside the cage said, laughing.

 _I want to die._

His laughing suddenly stopped, cutting off into a hitched gasp. I looked up watching blood seep from the from of his chest. He fell the the ground and grey eyes looked into mine. My own eyes widened in shock.

Levi quickly went to work on the lock. "Come on you two, get moving. Everyone's waiting for us outside."

Armin stood up on shaky legs, tears streaming down his pale face. He reached a hand down to me to help me up too but I only looked away. I couldn't leave. I couldn't face the rest of them like this.

"Eren, we don't have time for this." Levi said exasperated.

"Kill me."

Armin and Levi both looked at me shocked. An expression I didn't quite understand crossed Levi's face and then he was climbing inside the cage, pulling my up by my arm roughly. He was pissed but I couldn't find it in myself to care. Let him be mad. He can be as angry as he wants with me just so long as he gets rid of me.

"Shut the fuck up, Jaeger." He growled. "I didn't spend two weeks trying to hunt you two down only to kill you."

"Do you not see this!" I screamed. I waved down to myself trying to figure out how to make him understand. "Do you not realize what happened? Kill me, Levi."

"Eren," Armin whispered. "Come on."

"No!" I was crying again, angry. I thought I could trust Levi to do this for me. I thought he would be the one person who would understand why I _couldn't_ do this. If he killed me now he could go back out and just tell Mikasa the vampire that kidnapped us had done it. "Levi please, please just kill me."

His eyes softened, "You're going to hate me for this."

Something sharp pricked me in the arm. I looked down to see Levi injecting something into me. I stared down in shock as he pulled the needle out. "What?"

My world started swaying, and I fell to my knees. My vision grew fuzzy around the edges and I didn't have the strength in me to even feel mad at him for this. My head was too heavy for that.

Armin started to panick, running for me, only to stop when Levi held up a hand. "It's okay. It's just going to put him to sleep."

"Levi," I choked out. "Kill me."

And then everything went dark.

I could hear Erwin talking, soft but commanding. "Nobody will let Eren out of their sight. We'll put him under watch to make sure he doesn't do anything. He won't need to feed again for another week so we have time to figure that situation out." His voice faded out, and then back in. "-he's a danger to himself."

My head lolled, and I tried to keep my eyes open, but it was impossible. It was like they weighed a ton. When I was finally able to open them, and keep them open, I was in a bed. My head still felt foggy but it wasn't enough to put be back to sleep. I sat up slowly, looking around.

"Hey, kid."

I looked up to see Levi sitting on a small couch across the room and suddenly the only thing I could feel was betrayal.

"Why," I muttered. "Why don't you kill me."

"You're an idiot."

"Shut the fuck up."

"Bite me, Jaeger."

I flinched at that, the term suddenly striking a harsh chord in me. Levi winced. "I'm sorry."

"I can't do this," I whispered. "I can't live like this. Levi please, please." How could he not understand? How could I make him realize that this was the best thing in the end? I was crying again and I cursed myself for being so weak. I was just so angry and so hurt and I couldn't make the tears stop even if I tried.

Levi stood up and walked over to me, sitting beside me. "Eren, I won't do that."

"Why not," I cried. "You've killed hundreds of vampires, how am I any different?"

He put his hands on my shoulders and gently pushed me back down onto the bed, "Just go back to sleep."

"Please," I begged. "I want to die."

I couldn't stop sobbing. I couldn't believe him. I needed this. I needed to die and he wouldn't give it to me. He just stared at me with tears in his eyes like he cared. I was a monster now. Why would he care?

He layed down next to me, pulling me into his arms. I couldn't find the strength to fight back. I could hear his heartbeat underneath his skin and it only reminded me of what I had become. My own heartbeat was weak, pumping what new blood I had in me through my body to keep me alive. I couldn't stop thinking about how it was Armin's blood in my veins.

"Please," I sobbed. "You have to kill me."

He only ran his fingers through my hair and held me tighter, and I knew he wasn't going to give me what I wanted.

I'd have to do it myself.


	9. Chapter 9

It took a couple days before Armin stopped shaking and clinging to Mikasa and was able to start asking questions. He'd spent most of his time recovering from what happened and trying to console me when he wasn't with my sister. I knew Armin would want an explanation, but I didn't want to give it to him. I wanted to keep him in the dark. That's where he was safest. At least I thought that's where he was safest. I came to realize he was safest away from me. I was the reason he was brought into this mess. I _bit_ him. Yet, through all that he still found a way to forgive me.

I didn't deserve it.

No one had let me out of their site. No one would kill me. I couldn't have done it myself no matter how bad I want to because I was never alone. With every passing day I grew more and more angry. They didn't understand. I needed to die.

I tried to push those thoughts out of my mind for now though. We were all gathered at the table to figure out where Armin was going to go from here and I really didn't need to space out for this.

"I knew something was up for a long time," Armin said. Erwin cocked his head at them, like that surprised him. "I just would have never guessed it was vampires." He looked at me worried, like I would start crying any second. Granted I've been doing a lot of that lately. He looked over at Mikasa, "You guys could have told me."

"You were safer not knowing," I said softly. "And you're still safer not getting involved."

"It's a little too late for that," he said.

"What do you mean?" I demanded, scared to hear his answer.

"I'm already involved," he said. "And I don't plan on backing out. I might not be able to fight but I can help."

"You're not-."

"Eren, you don't get to decide this for me," he interrupted me. "I'm in whether you want me or not."

I looked over at Erwin, hoping he would turn him down.

"You're welcome to join us," Erwin said. My heart dropped.

"We can't stay here any longer," Hanji spoke up. "I say we head to Washington. The Titan's have been tracked down to there and we've spent too much time messing around."

Erwin nodded, "You're right."

Sasha raised her hand, "I have a house down in Washington too."

"Damn," Levi muttered. "Just how much money do you have?"

"She comes from a long line of hunters," Connie said when she started blushing. "They were well off. They have places just about everywhere in the US, plus some in Mexico and Canada."

"Sasha, we owe you a lot." Erwin told her.

She just waved him off, "Don't worry, you guys have been keeping this exciting enough to help. I'm coming with you though."

Erwin only nodded.

"Should we start packing?" Christa asked.

"Yes. We'll head out as soon as everyone is ready."

I refused to ride with Armin and Mikasa, not wanting to be around them the way that I was for so long. The fear that I would hurt them still lingered in the back of my mind and I needed to make sure they were safe from me. Mikasa was pissed, Armin was hurt, but it was for the best. I rode in the Erwin's car, Hanji in the front and Levi and I in the back. The drive was long, as expected, and after a while Levi fell asleep with his head resting on my shoulder.

"Well don't you two make a pretty picture," Hanji gushed, pulling out her phone and snapping a picture before I had the chance to respond. The flash momentarily blinded me and I blinked frantically trying to see again.

"Leave them alone, Hanji." Erwin told her. She only giggled and turned back around. Erwin looked at me through the rear view mirror. "I know you're taking being a vampire hard, but it gets better."

I really didn't want to have this conversation. I had a feeling it would come but from whom I had no idea. Knowing that it was going to be Erwin pissed me off a little. He was the reason Armin was getting involved and I wasn't sure I could forgive him for that. I sighed and asked, "Why won't any of you listen to me. You've all killed plenty of vampires, how am I any different? It's not supposed to be this way. I'm not supposed to be.. be… _this._ "

"I wanted to die too," Erwin said. I refused to look at him, keeping my eyes trained out the window. "I begged for the man who turned me to destroy me. I spend hundreds of years getting myself into trouble trying to die, but it never happened. I starved myself, only to find myself awake in a pool of blood surrounded by the bodies of the men and woman I killed in a bloodthirsty craze. I tried to stab my own heart, but I could never go through with it. Eren, I know. I understand. And because I understand I won't kill you, nor will I let anyone else including you do it."

"There's no point," I mumbled. "I'll do it someday."

"And leave Mikasa and Armin hurting behind you?"

"I-," I paused. I had thought of that, I knew they'd be upset, but it was for the best. "They'll be better off, safer"

Erwin shook his head at that, "No, Eren, they won't."

"I don't want to talk about this." I muttered.

"Everything will turn out alright, Eren." Hanji told me, her voice softer and quieter than I thought she'd be capable of.

I closed my eyes and leaned my head back, careful not to jostle Levi. "It doesn't matter."

"Did you know vampires take a mate for life," Erwin said.

"What does this have to do with anything?"

"I wanted nothing more to die. When Mike ran into me while we were both going after a rogue, and after killing it, I begged him to kill me. He didn't though. He took me to his house, cleaned me up, and sat down and made me tell him about myself. I didn't think we'd end up mated, but two weeks after we met it happened. I bit him and left my mark. He's the only reason I have the strength to live."

"I don't see how-."

"Mikasa and Armin, they're your strength now. If you don't want to live for yourself then live for them. It'll destroy them if you hurt yourself."

I took a deep breath, not wanting to answer. The way he put it made me almost feel guilty for being so adamant about dying.

Almost.


	10. Chapter 10

We got to Washington late that night. Levi was still passed out on my shoulder and I couldn't understand why he'd feel safe enough to sleep next to me. I couldn't understand anything he did. Him holding me at night when I started crying, or how he refused to kill me no matter how much I begged and pleaded. I don't know when I stopped thinking of him as a thorn in my side and more of someone I needed to lean on. Maybe it was the night he stitched me up. Maybe it was when he saved me.

I wasn't sure what to think.

No, I guess that wasn't true. I knew what this was I just refused to acknowledge it.

I gently shook Levi awake and he sat up more alert than I thought could be possible after a nap. He jumped out of the car and stretched, making a small noise in the back of his throat. Sasha led us into the house. It was huge and despite the pictures and furniture around the place it still felt empty. Or maybe I just felt empty.

God, when did I get so cynical.

"If I remember correctly there's only five rooms, so we're going to have to pair up." Sasha said. "Connie and I can take one. I assume you and Mike will share one too?" She looked at Erwin who only nodded. Mike reached over and took his hand in his. I watched their fingers intertwine thinking of what Erwin had told me on the way here. Mike was his reason for living. Even if he still wanted to die he wouldn't do it because he found something good.

Armin was good. Mikasa was good. Levi, dare I say it, was good.

I tore my eyes away to look back at Sasha.

"Christa and I will share a room," Ymir said.

Sasha flashed a grin at them. "Okay, two rooms left."

"Levi needs to share one with Eren," Erwin spoke up.

I looked up at him about to protest, but Mikasa beat me to it.

"Why him," she argued. "I'm his sister."

"Because Levi has had more experience with vampires then you have," Erwin told her. "Especially newborns. If something goes wrong Levi knows how to handle it."

"But-!"

"I also don't think Armin would appreciate sleeping in the same bed as me," Levi said. "He'd feel more comfortable with you."

She looked like she wanted to argue more, and I wanted her to do so also, but she looked at me for a moment before closing her mouth.

We all parted to go to bed, Levi and I taking the bedroom at the very end of the hallway. I dumped my suitcase onto the floor at the foot of the bed and Levi did the same with his.

Levi sat down on the bed, but I couldn't find it in myself to go to sleep quite yet. I pulled out a granola bar from my bag remembering Erwin saying that I still needed to eat human food. At least that was one thing I didn't need to give up. I nibbled on it quietly, choosing to look out the window instead of face Levi. I was still pissed at him for not doing what I had asked of him.

"I'm sorry things have turned out so shitty," Levi spoke up. "And I'm sorry I can't give you what you feel you need." He paused for a moment. "Well, actually I guess I'm not. I just wish I knew how to make this easier for you."

"You can't." I told him, keeping the emotion out of my voice. This was the last thing I expected of him. Levi didn't seem like the type to go out of his way to console someone, let alone me.

He sighed behind me. "I know. Eren, I need you to understand something. We need you. Mikasa and Armin especially. Leaving them behind would be selfish of you, and maybe it's selfish of me to make sure you keep living but….." I heard the bed creak as Levi stood up. "I need you around too."

The bathroom door closed behind him, and I fell to my knees sobbing into my hands.

I didn't know how to do this.

Mikasa knocked on my door the next day, and before I could even answer she walked right in. I frowned at her and grabbed an old shirt from the floor and tossed it at her.

"Don't walk in like that," I grumbled, a little annoyed. "What if I was naked."

"It's nothing I haven't seen before," she said. She walked over and sat on the bed patting the spot next to her. "We need to talk."

"If this is about-."

"You're not allowed to kill yourself." Mikasa cut me off before I could finish. I frowned at her for a moment before crossing my arms and looking away. This was the exact conversation I wanted to avoid having with her.

"First Erwin, than Levi, and now you." I muttered under my breath. "Do any of you understand?"

"Eren, I don't think _you_ understand."

I cocked my head confused, "What do you mean?"

"Do you understand how much easier you can hunt now that you're one of them?" She asked. "You can keep up with their strength and their speed. There's less chance of you _dying_ now that you're one of them. You can-."

"What does it matter," I looked at her incredulously, trying to figure out how she could look at this so positively. A vampire killed our mom, and now I've become one. How could she possibly be okay with this? "You know I'm going to outlive you right? You and Armin are going to die and I'm going to be all alone."

"So you're going to die first so we're the ones who have to suffer?" Mikasa was getting angry now, and that only pissed me off even more. "You know I refuse to leave you alone. I'll turn into one of those damn vampires myself. Mom told me to take care of you so that's what I'm going to do."

"I don't _need_ to be taken care of!" I shouted. I clenched my fists and ground my teeth trying to keep myself under control.

"You obviously do!" She shouted right back. "Here you are trying to figure out when you can go off and kill yourself, and if you did that then it means I've failed! You and Armin are the only family I have left and I refuse to let you do this to me."

"It's not your choice!"

"What about mom?" she asked. I looked away sharply and glared at the wall. She didn't speak for a moment, like she was waiting for me to, before continuing on. "What about the monster that killed her? Didn't you promise to kill him? I thought that's what we did all this for, to find him and take him out. Are you going to throw that away so quickly all because of _this_?" She waved her hands at my body in emphasis.

I bit my lip and scowled. Truth be told I hadn't thought about that, not since the night I was turned. I felt sick now. Guilty. I was frustrated with myself for forgetting that so quickly and easily.

"So stick around, Eren," Mikasa said softly. "We still have a job to do. I still need my family."

I let out a breath as she stood up and walked up to me carefully.

She was right. I couldn't die yet.

"Okay," I whispered. "I'll stay."

She let out a sigh of relief and wrapped her arms around me, squeezing me tightly. I hugged her back and buried my face into her shoulder.

It became normal for me to share a bed with Levi. I hardly even thought about it anymore. We were four days into our time in Washington but I felt like time really hadn't passed at all. I spent most of my time in bed or in the living room with Armin and Mikasa watching whatever they managed to find on TV. With each day I felt an ache growing in my bones and my throat and I knew I'd need to feed soon, but I couldn't find it in myself to ask for help. I pushed it down and to the back of my mind. Mikasa had mentioned letting me drink from her but I could bear the thought of her blood in my mouth. It made me queasy just thinking about it. So I ignored it the ache.

Hanji and Erwin were busy trying to pinpoint the exact location of the Titans, or at least the general area they were in. It was a lot harder than they anticipated.

"We've managed to narrow it down to about three cities," Hanji explained. "They're all next to each other so its still too much ground to cover but we're getting there."

"I know everyone has been antsy lately," Erwin spoke up. "We need to lay low, though. If they find out we're on to them they'll slaughter us before we could even pull our weapons. We're far enough away that I doubt they'd come to this town but just in case I want everyone armed before they leave the house to do anything. If you leave you will bring someone with you and let the whole group know where you're headed and what time you'll be back."

Erwin pulled me aside later that night, worry etched on his features. "Eren, you haven't drinking anything."

"I had a water," I mumbled, knowing that wasn't what he was asking but refusing to play into this. If I annoyed him enough maybe he'd go away.

He sighed in annoyance, "Eren, the longer you go without blood the more volatile you become. I will not put my people in danger because of your stubbornness. Either you drink from someone or I will force it down your throat."

I paled at that, gripping my hands tight. As much as the thought scared me it pissed me off even more that he would actually threaten to do it. I wanted to hit him. I wanted to hurt him. Erwin couldn't make me do anything because I was not his to boss around.

But he was right, and I hated myself for admitting it.

"Are we clear?"

I ground my teeth together for a moment before nodding stiffly.

"Good," Erwin put a hand on my shoulder. "I'm going to bed, its getting late. I'll see you tomorrow."

I didn't say anything as he walked away. I waited for him to close the bedroom door behind him before I walked into my own. Levi was on the bed drying off his hair and I took a step back in shock when I realized the only thing he was wearing was a towel around his waist. I swallowed audibly before turning my attention to my suitcase to grab a pair of pajama pants to sleep in. I kept my back to him as I slid my pants off.

"Nice ass, Jaeger."

I thought I was going to die.

"Shut up," I mumbled, slipping on my pjs quickly.

"Bite me."

"Do you just like vampire puns or something?" I asked turning around.

He stared at me wide eyed, like he was suddenly scared that I had caught on. He looked away to grab a brush from the bedside table and run it through his hair. "Um, no. A friend of mine used to say it a lot and it kind of grew on me."

I didn't ask anymore, the way his back tensed up had me regretting even bringing it up in the first place. I pulled my shirt over my head and stuck it in the corner with the rest of my dirty clothes. I was running low on choices to wear so I'd have to wash them tomorrow. I grimaced slightly at the idea before turning back to Levi.

"You haven't drank anything," Levi said as I laid down next to him.

I ran a hand down my face with a groan, "Why is everyone obsessed with my blood intake?"

"Erwin talk to you about it?" he asked.

"You could say that."

It was quieted for a moment before Levi said softly, "Bite me."

I looked at him in confusion, trying to figure out what I had said to make him throw his shitty vampire joke at me. "What? Did I say something?"

He grimaced. "No you idiot, I'm being serious."

I stared at him in shock, "Wait, what?"

"Are you deaf or something?" Levi rubbed his face in annoyance. "Fuck, you really are a brat."

I sat up a little offended, "Don't be an ass, Levi. I'm not going to bite you."

He just regarded me coolly as he sat up with me, "You need to drink, if you don't you'll just get sick and attack someone else."

I paled at that. "But-."

"I know this isn't what you wanted. Trust me, nobody would have wanted this for you either. This is your reality now, though, and you need to take it seriously before you hurt someone." He put his hand to the back of my head, rubbing my scalp as if he was trying to sooth me.

I stared at him unable to think of anything decent to say. Of course I didn't want to hurt anyone. That was the _last_ thing I wanted. Drinking blood though, from someone who was living and breathing as I did, scared me.

"I don't want to," I whispered. "What if I can't stop?"

"I'm not giving you a choice," Levi told me, voice commanding. He pulled my head closer to him. "I'll make sure you don't kill me."

"But-."

"Eren, please shut up."

He pulled my head into the crook of his neck and I started shaking. I could hear the blood in his veins and the beating of his heart and it made my mouth water. I whimpered and closed my eyes.

"Hurry up."

I placed one hand to the back of his head and the other to his shoulder and I realized he was shaking too. He was just as scared as I was. I took a shaky breath and gently wound my fingers through his hair to coax him to tilt his head just a little more. His own hand tightened on the back on my head and I fought back a complaint.

I opened my mouth a little and tried to steel myself for what I was about to do. I was more than terrified. I genuinely liked Levi, a lot. I didn't want to hurt him. I realized though that the more I stalled the more he started shaking, so I took a deep breath and bit into his shoulder before I could dwell on it anymore.

Levi gasped and I found myself whimpering again as his blood filled my mouth. It was different then what I remembered Armin's tasting like, better, but I chalked that up to it just being a different person. I suppose no two people taste alike.

It was different though in that I was aware of myself too. I knew I could stop if I wanted to but I trusted Levi to know his limits. He'd let me know when to stop. His hand relaxed in my hair to run through it instead. He was still shaking and it made me feel terrible but I didn't know what to do about it. I rubbed my thumb into his shoulder to try and let him know that I was okay and in my right mind. It seemed to work.

The ache in my bones soothed as I drank, and after a moment Levi whispered, "Okay, thats enough."

I pulled away from him, licking the two puncture marks on his neck as blood seeped from them. Levi shuddered against me and I watched patiently as the holes closed up and healed over before pulling away.

Levi looked at me slightly dazed before frowning. "You have blood on the corner of your lip."

I blushed and quickly licked at my mouth. "Are you okay?"

He waved a hand in nonchalance. "Perfect. Let's go to sleep."

I watched him warily as he laid down, pulling the covers up over himself and turning his back to me. I laid down beside him worried that somehow I had hurt him.

Just as I was almost asleep, his hand reached out and grabbed mine.


	11. Chapter 11

"Hey, Christa," I popped my head into the doorway to peer at her. "I'm doing laundry, have any clothes you need washing?"

A small blonde head poked out from the bathroom, "Oh, yeah! Two seconds."

I watched patiently as she ran around the room, over the bed, onto the couch, and pausing to look underneath the dresser pulling out a sock, collecting clothes before handing them to me. "Do you need any help?"

I shook my head, "Naw, don't worry about it. Hey, where's Ymir?"

"Christa, if you don't hurry up I'm showering without you," Ymir shouted from the bathroom, answering my question. "If you want me to go down on you any time soon then you'd better get in here."

Christa flushed and I felt my own cheeks start to burn. "U-um. I'll let you two shower then."

"If you need my help just call for me," Christa told me with a sweet smile.

"Christa!" Ymir whined. "I'm lonely."

Christa closed the door with an apologetic smile and I made my way through the halls, picking up dirty clothes from whoever I met. Sasha and Connie were out though and I wasn't about to dig through their room for dirty clothes (mostly because I was afraid of what I might find) so I figured they could do their own laundry. I made my way into the basement and to the laundry room, managing to fit all the clothes into one washer with only a little struggle. I huffed and wiped my hair from my face before closing the lid and starting it. I hopped up on top and pulled out my phone to play some games while I waited for it to be done.

I figured it would be okay if I hung out alone for a while. I knew Armin and Mikasa were missing me but I was hardly ever left alone so being here was somewhat of an escape. It was becoming overwhelming having eyes constantly on me, watching my every move.

 _I could kill myself now, I could find something to do it and get it over with._

I chewed on my lower lip and leaned my head against the wall with a sigh. I knew there was a broom over in the corner. I would only have to snap it in half for it to make a somewhat decent stake. It would at least work well enough. I ran the idea back and forth in my head before I went back to my phone. With Levi's blood in my system I found my head a lot clearer. Everything had been muddled and angsty since Armin and I were rescued. I had been so fragile around everyone that they had walked on eggshells around me, scared of making me cry again. Now that I had fed everything was kind of put into perspective.

I still didn't want to be who I was right now. I was the thing that used to haunt my nightmares. I went from terrified of monsters to _being_ one and the thought made me sick with every fiber of my being. Death never sounded so nice and reasonable.

But I still hadn't found the man who killed my mom.

Talking with Mikasa really put that into perspective. That son of a bitch was still out there and I was determined to kill him before I killed myself. As soon as he was gone then I could die, but until then I had to hang on.

Even though my head was a lot clearer though, Levi continued to confuse me. He was the last person I thought would let a vampire bite them but he practically forced it on me. He reached for me and held my hand. The more I thought about it the more I realized Levi was confusing even before. From the time he almost touched my dick after a hunt to the times he's held me while I cried. He had my head spinning so fast I was dizzy. I didn't think my heart could take too much of him before giving out.

The emotional part of me suggested that maybe he was interested in me, but the logical side refused to see it that way. I couldn't find anything about myself that would be remotely interesting enough for me to think he would like me in any sort of romantic way. He was probably just looking for a quick fuck and the more I thought about it the more I wasn't okay with it. Sleeping with him would be great but I wanted more than that.

I slammed my head against the wall and cursed. A stupid crush was the exact opposite of what I needed right now. Levi's been great and he's been there for me and I'm emotionally needy right now, so that has to be what this is.

I knew that wasn't true but I repeated it to myself over and over anyways. I didn't have time for anything even remotely close to romantic feelings. I had shit to do. I have a murderer to kill and a clan to help wipe out and if I let my thoughts get muddled with the thought of someone else it would get me killed.

Right when the dryer beeped at me Levi walked in. He paused in the doorway looking at me for a moment. I hopped off the washer I was currently sitting on and shoved my phone back into my pocket.

"I came to help." He said.

I couldn't bring myself to look him in the eye, already feeling my cheeks burn. "Okay."

We worked in silence afterwards, folding clothes and putting them into the laundry baskets. It was almost relaxing, and after a while the tenseness in my shoulders finally ebbed away. It was when I had folded the last pair of jeans that I found myself crowded against the dryer.

"Levi, what-?"

"Shut up for a second."

I closed my mouth obediently. Levi frowned at me, staring into my eyes like he was trying to find something. He was pressed so tightly against me that I could feel his warmth through our clothes. I found my mind wandering off into embarrassing thoughts and I quickly turned my attention to the corner of the room, staring at the cobweb and trying to keep my head out of the gutter. Levi didn't say anything. He just looked me over and the more he stared the more hungry his gaze got. When he looked back up at my blushing face he seemed to find whatever he was searching for.

"How obvious do I have to be," he muttered under his breath.

Before I could even ask what he was talking about his hand was gripping the back of my head and pulling me down into a kiss. My brain short circuited and for a moment I couldn't do anything. All I could do was stand there dumbly, head completely blank, because _why?_ When he started to pull away, almost too quickly for it to be a kiss, I finally spurred myself into action scared because even if I didn't understand I didn't want it to stop. His lips were hot and a little chapped but I really didn't care. I just needed it from him. I needed the closeness and the attention I was getting. I cupped his neck and pulled him back to deepen the kiss. My eyes fluttered closed as I let myself get lost in this. It started out slow. Both of us were just testing the waters, feeling each other, taking our time because this finally solidified what had been going on between us. At least I hoped it did. A nagging in the back of my mind was telling me that this was was only leading up to a quick fuck. We'd all been emotionally drained and it seemed plausible that we'd want to take it out on each other. Maybe that was just what Levi was doing.

Teeth nipping at my lower lip pulled me out of my thoughts and I gasped in response. Levi's tongue was immediately in my mouth moving against mine. The longer we kissed the more rough it got. Levi sucked at my tongue and gently bit it, smirking into my mouth when I moaned into his. I felt myself growing hotter and hotter with every passing second and my pants were getting uncomfortably tight. When Levi ground his front into mine I almost lost myself.

"Shit, kid," Levi moaned, pulling away.

I chose not to respond, instead leaning down to bite gently at his neck mindful of my fangs. Levi stiffened up slightly and I found myself wondering if I had done something wrong, and then he groaned chasing that worry away. I sucked at his neck desperate to leave something behind on him.

"Eren," Levi gasped. "I need… we need to-."

"Levi? Eren?" Hanji's shrill voice had Levi jumping back with a curse. "Are you down there?"

Levi panted slightly for a moment before calling up, "Yeah. We just finished laundry."

"Tell Eren I need him for a second!"

I groaned and ran a hand down my face, "I'll be right there!"

With my boner successfully killed I straightened up and grabbed the laundry basket. Levi scowled at the stairs leading to the first floor.

A hand on my arm stopped me before I could even take a step up.

"We'll finish this later," Levi said. My cock stirred in my pants and I found the only thing I could do was nod.

I thought Hanji was going to drop to her knees with the way she begged. "Please, Eren! Just one little test."

"Don't bother the poor kid," Mike said as he passed by. "He's been through enough."

"But I have so many theories," Hanji said, turning to him with crazed eyes. "Like the one about the moon and vampire reproductive habits and-," as she babbled on Mike gave me a look and mouthed 'run' and he didn't have to tell me twice. I was out of there and down the halls into Armin and Mikasa's room.

"Eren?"

I looked over to see the two of them in the middle of a chess game and I took a moment to die a little inside over how nerdy my friends could be.

"Sorry," I said sitting down beside them. "I had to escape Hanji."

"She try to get you to do some of her experiments?" Armin asked with a raised eyebrow.

I nodded, "She started talking about vampire sex and I got out of there as fast as I could."

Mikasa frowned, "Who here could you possibly have sex with?"

I blushed and looked away hurriedly, laughing nervously. Luckily Mikasa didn't seem to realize how weird I reacted to her comment. Glancing at Armin though I saw him looking at me curiously. There was no way he was going to let me out of this.

"Hey, Mikasa!" Ymir appeared in the doorway, Christa at her side. "We're heading into town for a little while, kind of a girls night out. You want to come?"

Mikasa looked like she was about to deny the invitation when Armin spoke up, "You should! It would be fun." _No, don't leave me alone with Armin._

She looked at him for a moment and then back at me before standing up and following them out.

Armin immediately turned to me and stared at me. "Okay, spill."

I blushed and put my hands over my face, groaning. What even _was_ here to talk about? I wasn't even sure myself.

"It's Levi isn't it," he said. "It has to be, I think he's the only one single here. Unless it's Mikasa or me but I doubt that very much."

"Armin-."

"So what happened. Did you two do it yet?"

"No!" I shouted hurriedly. I flinched at how loud I'd been before lowering my voice. "No, um. We've kissed," literally ten minutes ago, "and he's been trying to help me since me and you…" I paused at that, trying not to remember and relive any of those moments. I shook my head.

"I kind of got the feeling you didn't like him at first."

I winced. "I didn't. He was kind of an ass, but… I don't know. We almost um… did… _stuff_ after a hunting trip we went on and I've just… it's different now." I didn't dare mention that we'd probably be having sex later, possibly tonight. That was one bit I was determined to keep to myself.

Armin nodded. "So, how have you been feeling."

"Good," I lied.

"You're really bad at lying, Eren."

I groaned, "I've been managing, I guess. I'm getting better."

"You're handling the whole being a vampire thing okay?" Armin looked at me worriedly.

I paused at that, and he took that as my answer. No, I hadn't been. It was still eating me up and leaving me sick but I had been trying my best to ignore it. I'd been drinking Hanji's strange concoction so I could continue on pretending I was still human and go outside, or even pass by in front of a window, and keep my sleeping schedule the same as everyone else's.

"Eren, you can talk to me."

"Yeah, I know."

I took Mikasa's spot in the game, and I let Armin completely obliterate me in silence.

I wasn't sure how I was going to do this, and I felt beyond awkward. All I did was sit on the edge of the bed fidgeting with my hands because I didn't know what to do with myself. Levi was in the shower and had been since I walked into the room. Almost everyone had headed to bed, save for Connie and Sasha who continued to play video games in the front room. The house was eerily silent except for the sound of water running and I wasn't sure how I was going to keep my sanity at this point.

When I heard the water shut off I scrambled for my phone and leaned back on the bed, opening a game I really couldn't care less for and trying to look casual. The door opened a few minutes later but I refused to look up. My fingers shook as I tapped at the screen.

 _God, calm down._

Slim fingers pulled my phone from my hand and I looked up, immediately blushing when I saw that the only thing Levi had on was a towel around his waist. He raised a thin eyebrow at me as he placed my phone on the nightstand.

"Nervous?" He asked.

"No," I lied.

"We don't have to do this-."

"No!" I shouted. I immediately slapped a hand over my mouth and squeezed my eyes tight. _Shit._ "No, um. I want this."

Levi hummed, crawling onto the bed and situating himself over my hips. I swallowed hard and tried hard to keep my eyes from looking anywhere but his face.

"Calm down," Levi said softly. "I don't bite."

I rolled my eyes at that, gathering up whatever courage I had left and reaching up to cup his face. I brought his lips down to mine and kissed him. As his lips moved against mine slowly my nervousness faded away. Levi's slender hands grabbed at my biceps and he let his hips settle against mine. I swallowed a moan and kissed him harder.

Levi paused to tug at my shirt and I lifted my arms as he pulled it off of me. He didn't make a move to kiss me again, letting his hands rest on my chest before running them down. He turned a hot gaze to me and kissed me hard. Arms wrapped around my neck to pull me up into a sitting position and I coiled my own around his waist, pulling him closer to me. Whatever nervousness I had before was long gone and now all I wanted to do was feel him. I slipped my hands underneath the towel and grabbed at his ass.

"Shit kid," Levi moaned when he pulled away. He kissed along my jawline. "I didn't know you had it in you."

I found myself desperate to show him I wasn't some blushing virgin, that I had at least some idea of what I was doing. I spun us around and situated us until he was underneath me, legs locked around my waist. I grinned when I saw the shocked expression on his face. He smiled back after a moment and placed his hands against my chest.

"I don't have lube," he told me. "So don't get too carried away."

I was actually relieved to hear that. Already things were going fast and I didn't think my courage would hold up to actually having sex with him. I tried not to let that show on my face as I pulled the towel from his waist. He lifted his hips to help me out but that only had him brushing against the front of my pants and for a moment I forgot what I was even doing. I shucked the towel somewhere in the room before leaning back down to kiss him. He bit at my lips as his fingertips grazed the top of my pants.

When his hand suddenly shoved itself into my pants I couldn't hold back a curse, shouting "fuck" into his mouth. His hand was hot against me, grasping me and stroking as much as he possibly could inside the confines of my pants. It had my legs tensing up and my brain short circuiting.

I pulled away to kiss at his neck, sucking at the skin there and moaning again when he pulled his hand out to mess with the button and zipper of my pants. He quickly undid them and slid my pants down just enough for him to cup my ass and pull me down to grind into him.

"Take off," he paused, moaning softly, "your pants."

I pulled away and hurriedly squirmed myself out of them. I kicked them off the side of the bed when I was finally free. When I situated myself back over him an idea struck my head. I had no idea how well it would work because I'd really only seen it in porn and never tried it but I figured it might be a nice idea.

I spit into my hand and before Levi could complain about it being disgusting grabbed both our cocks, wrapping my fingers around them as much as I could before slowly stroking. I sucked in a breath at the feeling. Levi stared down at my hand before leaning his head back and moaning. Taking it as a sign I was doing okay I stroked us a little faster, groaning low in my throat. It wasn't the same as jacking myself off but seeing Levi's face twist up in pleasure and feeling the way his fingernails dug into my skin had it feeling almost better.

"Eren," Levi moaned. His eyes fluttered closed. "Fuck."

I stroked us a little faster and leaned down to kiss and nip at his jawline. I felt the familiar tightening in my lower belly and moaned loudly. I felt hot all over, burning up. When Levi finally opened his eyes to look at me my heart fluttered and I locked my gaze on him. I wanted to watch him when he came.

It only took a few more minutes before he was shouting, tensing up and gripping my shoulders so tightly that if I were still human his fingernails would have had me bleeding. He bit his bottom lip hard and shook a little, pressing his face into the pillow beneath him. Watching him lose himself like that had me cumming too, slumping over him to moan into his shoulder as I finished myself off. When my head finally cleared enough I rolled off of him, looking up at the ceiling and panting hard. Levi didn't say anything. Instead he got out of bed and grabbed the towel I had thrown off and wiped at his stomach. He walked back over to me and wiped off my messy cock making me yelp at the stimulation before he crawled over me and under the covers. He turned his back to me and I felt my stomach drop.

I knew it. I knew all he wanted was someone to get off with. That's all I ever was to him. I bit back a sigh and pulled the covers over myself. I laid there on my back staring at the ceiling trying to convince myself that maybe this wasn't so bad, but it still hurt.

"Eren," Levi muttered, annoyed. "Are you going to lay there like that all night or are you going to hold me."

I looked at him shocked, before turning over to mold myself against his back. I draped my arm over his waist and his fingers found mind, winding them together, as he shuffled a little closer to me. Why?

"I don't want this to be a one time thing," Levi said, tiredly, answering my silent question. "I really do like you. Its not even because I want to fuck you."

I sputtered a little bit at that. "What?"

He turned his head to fix a glare at me. "I'm trying to say I fucking like you, shithead. Now shut up and go to sleep."

I stared at him shocked for a while before I finally relaxed, leaning forward to kiss at his neck in thanks. Maybe he didn't even realize how worried I was that he only wanted me around for sex, but either way his words had calmed my anxiety and fears for the most part. I was still curious as to what he could possibly see in me, but that thought slipped from my mind as I fell asleep.


	12. Chapter 12

The more I thought about it the more confused I got. Laying here holding Levi while he continued to sleep left me with only my thoughts and lately that hasn't been a good thing. Doubt started swirling around my head making it hard to focus on anything but my insecurities. I couldn't see what Levi was attracted to in me. I couldn't find any traits that were admirable or appealing in any way. I was just an emotionally unstable brat. A _vampiric_ emotionally unstable brat.

Levi mumbled and moved around in my arms, opening an eye and peering at me.

"Morning," I whispered.

He only grunted and shoved his head into my chest. I smiled and ran a hand over his back. He was never very coherent when he woke up, and words are usually the last thing on his mind. It was rare that I got to wake up before him but it was always fun when I did. He was never as clingy or affectionate as he was when he just woke up.

"What time is it?" he mumbled into me.

"Um," I squinted at the clock on the bedside table. "Nine."

He rolled out of my arms and off the bed, and I blushed when I realized that we were still naked. He stretched, bones cracking, before lazily walking over to his suitcase. He looked at me over his shoulder. "You going to get dressed?"

 _No, because your naked ass just gave me a boner._ "Uh, yeah."

I pulled the covers off of me and kept my back to him as I sidestepped to my own pile of clothing. I knew I probably looked ridiculous and that alone had me self conscious but the last thing I wanted him to see right now was my semi. I quickly pulled on underwear and pants before turning to look at Levi. He was stopped in the middle of pulling his pants up, staring at me strangely with a thin eyebrow raised. I only sheepishly grinned before grabbing a shirt and pulling it over my head.

"Can I ask you a serious question," I mumbled after Levi had finished buttoning up his pants.

"As long as it's not stupid." Levi told me as he rummaged around to find a shirt.

"Why me?" I asked. I blushed and looked away, rubbing my neck and coughing awkwardly. I immediately regretted asking that realising I just sounded like a brat.

Levi didn't speak for a moment. "That was a stupid question, I'm not answering that."

"I'm sorry I just," I paused to take a deep breath, trying to calm my nerves. "I'm the exact thing you hunt, I'm not very emotionally stable as this past week has made it painfully obvious, and I'm a brat. I just have a hard time trying to figure out why."

"There doesn't need to be a why," Levi told me. "Just know it's you. All those things you listed off don't matter. Its not like I just wanted ass for a night, as nice as the thought is, I wanted you."

I played with my fingers, still refusing to look at him in the eye. "So… this thing, it's going to continue."

"If you want it to," Levi said. "And I really hope you do."

"And that would make us…?"

Levi strode over to me, grabbing the back of my head to yank me down to his height. "Jesus, kid. I know you're stupid but-." He shook his head, tilting his head up to peck me on the lips. "What do you think that makes us?"

I swallowed nervously. "Boyfriends?"

"Bingo."

I stared at him for a moment, trying to remember how to breathe, "Okay, we're boyfriends."

The sound of frantic clapping had me nearly jumping out of my skin. Levi whirled around to look at the door to see two heads poking through.

"About time," Armin exclaimed grinning, still clapping. "We were wondering when it would ever happen."

Mikasa actually looked happy about it too, which I didn't expect seeing as she and Levi didn't always get along. Hanji poked her head out too with a wild smile and a phone. A flash blinded me and it took me a moment to realize she had snapped a picture.  
"What?"

Levi growled beside me. "Aren't we allowed any privacy?"

Erwin's deep voice came from behind the door. "Nope."

Mike's voice sounded next. "I smell sex."

"Fuck!"

The initial shock of having been listened in on wore off as the day went on. Hanji kept cooing at us and taking pictures until Levi had had enough and chucked her phone across the yard. Mike kept sniffing us and grimacing and I'd really rather not think about what he was smelling on us.

When it was finally time to get to bed Levi and I both were exhausted of everything.

"Jesus christ," Levi groaned, flopping down on the bed. "I'm going to stake them all."

I fell down beside him with a whine. "Please."

Levi turned over to look at me, brushing his hair away from his face. I bit my lip as I blushed.

And cursed.

"Shit," I mumbled, sitting up. One of my fangs had nicked my lip and I found myself wiping at my mouth to try to get the blood off. "Not again."

Levi sighed and disappeared for a moment, before coming back with a wet rag. He wiped at my mouth with a grimace, "You really need to stop doing that."

"Habit," I mumbled. "Besides, it heals fast now."

He just smiled softly and tossed the bloody rag into the laundry bin. "Still not used to them yet?"

I ran a tongue over the sharp points of my teeth, careful not to nick myself. "No, not sure I will."

Not even sure I'd be used to being a vampire in general. _Knowing_ that these things were out there took years for me to fully comprehend and become accustomed to. If I hadn't had a reason to stay in this world I would have just pretended they weren't there. I could live in forced ignorance until the day I died because something like this wasn't something you could just believe in without being forced to.

And that made me wonder why Levi was a part of this world too.

I fiddled with the hem of my shirt, "Um, Levi?"

"Yeah, kid?" He kept staring at me, reaching up to trace the planes of my face with his fingertips. I relaxed in his touched and forced my next question out.

"Why did you become a hunter?"

Levi grimaced, pausing in the middle of stroking my cheek. "Are you really that curious?"

"Well, you know why I did. It's only fair that you tell me too."

Levi rubbed at his face. "Yeah, you're right."

I tried not to let on how excited I was to hear this. The amused look on his face told me I wasn't doing a good job at it though. Levi didn't say anything for a moment and I didn't press him. Either you were born into hunting or an traumatic event convinced you into it. From the look on his face it was the latter.

"I was living on the streets for a while," Levi started. "My mother died of HIV when I was four, and my uncle took my in up until I was around eight. Not that he really took care of me. All he taught me was how to hold a knife and how to fight. I was in and out of foster care until I turned eighteen and could get out of the system. I had a friend then, Farlan, and we guarded each others backs. We weren't exactly in a good part of town. Sleeping at night could be dangerous without watch." He frowned and I took the momentary pause in his story to grab his hand, holding it tightly in mine. I couldn't imagine Levi being homeless. I knew how much he liked to be clean so imagining him like that was impossible.

Levi kissed my knuckles before continuing. "We finally scrounged up enough money for a studio apartment. One night we hear someone frantically knocking at the door, begging for help. That's how we met Isabel. It wasn't until I stumbled on her drinking from someone that I found out she was a vampire. She wasn't a hunter, and I didn't have much interest in it either." His jaw clenched and I squeezed his hand tightly, trying to comfort him and prepare myself for what was coming next. "Isabel accidentally pissed someone off. We had five guys blocking out way out of an alleyway. There was no way out without fighting. By the time Isabel realized they were vampires it was too late. We had no way to fight them off or protect ourselves. Isabel and Farlen died. Erwin, he saw the commotion, and finished the guys off almost too fast for me to comprehend. I owe my life to him." Levi shook his head, as if trying to shake away the memories. "Anyways, Isabel is where the 'bite me' joke comes from. She thought it was funny."

I almost couldn't find words. It seemed like anything I could possibly say wouldn't be enough. I could feel tears pricking at the corner of my eyes at his story and the way his hand shook in mine. After a moment I decided there was nothing I could say that would be good enough, so I settled for a simple whispered, "I'm sorry."

"It's been a few years kid," he ruffled my hair, a small sad smile on his face. "Don't worry too much."

 _As if,_ I thought. I buried my face into his neck and kissed him there, wrapping my arms around him tightly. Levi let me hold him until his hands stopped shaking and his lips stopped quivering.

When Erwin said we were going to see a friend of his and Mike's, it was unexpected. We were all sitting around playing mario cart and Christa was trying very hard to keep in a nonviolent game when suddenly Mike was ushering out of the house and Erwin was trying to get him to tell him what he talked about on the phone. Apparently it was an emergency.

"This is Nanaba," Erwin said, introducing us to a petite girl with short blonde hair. "She's a witch, and a clairvoyant."

I didn't even know witches were a _thing._ I tried not to stare at her because I knew the shock and confusion had to be all over my face. If there was one thing I was bad at it was hiding my emotions.

Walking into her house I was prepared to see runes on the walls, bones drying next to windows, or even a sacrifice on the coffee table. What I saw though was a normal house and I felt bad for expecting any different because the only thing I got from Nanaba was gentle. The smell of incense burned in the air and I could see thin smoke trails wafting from the kitchen. She motioned towards her couches and told everyone to make themselves comfortable. Erwin and Mike took the love seat. Christa sad in Ymir's lap in one of the arm chairs. Levi, Sasha, Connie, and I squeezed ourselves into the couch and I slung an arm around Levi's shoulders.

"Do you guys need anything to drink?" she asked.

Everyone asked for water, Ymir asked for a beer. Christa scolded her and told Nanaba just to bring her water. I was still choking down snickers behind a hand when Nanaba started handing out everyone's drinks, including Ymir's can of beer.

"What was so important," Erwin asked. "It's not that I hate seeing you, it's just that someone has been keeping tabs on Eren so we've been trying to lay low for a while."

"I saw you were nearby," Nanaba said. "Among other things. I have news on Titan."

Everyone was immediately interested. I tensed up trying to ready myself for what she had to say. Nothing about Titan was good, and with the way she was looking at us it wasn't something we've accounted for.

"They're watching you," she said. "That's why I needed you here. They have a witch with them who's been keeping an eye on you. She doesn't know much other than you're in the state but she's been watching your movement. I wanted to cast a spell on all of you so she couldn't see you anymore."

I felt a chill down my spine at what she told us, and Levi tensed against me. I squeezed his shoulders with my arm.

"You sure?" Mike asked.

She turned to him with a sad face, "Positive."

It didn't take her long to cast her spell of each of us, murmuring under her breath and prodding places on our body. I could feel the energy in me shift after she had done me, almost wrapping around me like a shield.

"I also saw a lot of blood," she said softly when she was done. "Whatever is coming up, it's big. You all need to be careful and ready at any time."

"Anything specific?" Christa asked.

Nanaba pursed her lips, taking a moment before she responded. "Nothing of utmost importance. Most of it was unclear."

Mike and Erwin gave her a hug as we left, and I couldn't help but notice the way she clung extra tight to Mike and whispered into Erwin's ear, making him stiffen up and his eyes widen in fear. When we left her house I looked back at her to see her waving, and as we drove off I watched her wipe tears off her face and stumble back in the house.

Whatever she had told Erwin, it was big, and it shook me to the core.


	13. Chapter 13

**Author Notes - Sorry this took so long. This features sex and a lot of it and bottom levi.**

Control was something I always desperately tried to keep hold of, especially when so much of it seemed impossible to grasp in this kind of life. When all I could do was stand there and scream when my mom died, there was no control. When I was turned into a monster against my will, nothing. Biting Armin, falling for Levi, and now this.

We lost our edge of surprise. The titans knew we were here and that we were after them. We lost complete control of the situation.

I was angry. It was the same anger I felt when I staked my first vampire. It was the kind that boiled over, made you cry and throw your fists and break things. I wanted to throw the room in complete disarray. I wanted to shatter the windows and rip the drapes and kick holes in the wall.

Instead I was sitting in bed almost scared to blink like that would be enough to set me off. I knew my emotions were volatile, but it had been a while since I felt so completely shaken. I kept my grip tight on the sheets and my mouth pressed into a firm line. I didn't want to do or say anything I might regret.

"Eren," Levi said softly. "Talk to me."

"We really have no control," I whispered. "Do we. We hold a stake in our hands and we kill things. We like to pretend we're leading our own lives and that we have everything handled. We don't, though. Do we?"

Levi didn't say anything. He just leaned against the wall, knowing I had more to say. I could feel angry tears sliding down my cheeks and that only pissed me off more.

I'm so weak.

"It pisses me off." I said, my voice a little louder. "That I have no control. I have no control over my own life, or whose in it. I've been watched possibly since the night my mom died by some sick fuck. Now we can't even catch the Titan's off guard because we had someone spying on us. There's no control over the circumstances. There never has been. I haven't had one ounce of control over _anything_ since I was thrown in this world. It pisses me off."

"Eren," Levi sighed, but when I looked at him I could tell he knew exactly what I was talking about.

"I just," I was shaking, trying so hard to hold it back. Anger issues, my mom used to tell me. She'd take me to classes that taught me how to breath. I didn't even have control over _myself._

"Take it out on me."

My eyes widened in shock, staring at Levi because he had to be crazy. All the implications that came with what he said shook me to the core. I couldn't even imagine doing anything to him that might harm him. It made me feel sick.

"I'm not going to hurt you." I whispered, pissed that he would even offer something like that.

He shrugged. "I wouldn't let you anyways, and I didn't mean it like that. Yell at me, scream at me, hell if you need to take it out through sex then go ahead." He stepped closer until he was in front of me, cradling my head in his hands. "It isn't going to help you to sit here and dwell and let it all bottle up inside of you. You feel like you have no control, so take control of me."

I wasn't entirely sure what I was thinking when I kissed him. Levi went slack in my arms, letting me maneuver him wherever I wanted him. Even beneath me he was pliant. He let me ravage his mouth and pull at his clothes. When the buttons of his shirt popped off he didn't complain. When I cupped him through his jeans he could only moan, grinding up against me.

I was biting him, scratching him, pulling at his hair while I kissed him and he laid there and took everything I could give. I marked up his neck, his chest, along milky thighs, and he only shook against me and moaned.

After looking down at him, seeing the way he panted and how red his face had gotten, I didn't have it in me. I couldn't do this. I was scared if I let myself go too much I might kill him. I was stronger. I was more dangerous.

I didn't want to hurt him.

So I slowed down, I used his hips to drag him up closer to me, and I kissed the juncture between his neck and shoulder softly.

"Eren?" Levi's voice was breathy, and his hands lifted up to my shoulders. "What's wrong?"

"I don't want to hurt you." I whispered into his skin.

"You won't."

"I might."

Levi grabbed my face and forced me to look at him. "It's alright kid, I can handle myself."

I cupped my hand around the one on my face. "I don't want to take the chance."

His lips turned up into a small smile. "Do you want to stop then?"

"No," I told him truthfully. "I just…."

He leaned up and kissed at my jaw, "Then take what you want. If I don't like anything you do to me, I'll tell you."

"Promise?"

"Eren, my cock is starting to hurt."

"Levi, _please_."

He sighed, "I promise."

I kissed him, softer this time, trailing my hands down his bare chest. I cupped his cock and he arched into me. I liked this. I loved making him feel good. The thought of being rough with him when I still haven't explored enough of his body to know what he liked made me feel sick. I wanted him to like it as much as he possibly could.

I wrapped my fingers around his cock, letting him buck into me with small groans for a moment before I pressed his hips down with my free hand. I stroked him slowly only wanting to see the kind of faces he made. I wanted to hear him. He shook, sitting up a little to grasp at my shoulder and moan weakly. He was so hot in my hand, he looked so beautiful, and I couldn't help but chase after everything he had to give. It didn't take long for him to spill in my hand. He gasped and moaned, face red and wrecked and it was everything I ever wanted it to be. It was a face I didn't think I could ever tire of.

Levi fell back against the bed and draped an arm over his face, chest heaving. "I thought… you said… you wanted to have sex."

I kissed at his hips, "Think you can get hard again?"

"It might kill me," he groaned. "Can your cock handle waiting for it."

"Not going to lie," I told him, unzipping my pants so they didn't feel as restricting. "My cock is aching, but I'll be alright."

Levi laughed, "Okay, okay. There's lube and condoms in the top drawer."

I frowned, more than a lot confused. "When did you get all that?"

"I had Mike get it for me a few days ago," Levi muttered. I took a closer look at him to see he was blushing a little. I leaned over him to kiss at his neck choosing not to point it out. I valued my life after all.

I reached over to the drawer, fumbling around until I pulled out a box of condoms and a bottle of lube. I set them beside me, pausing to take my own shirt off. The room seemed to just keep getting hotter and hotter and clothes were almost unbearable at this point. I knew that if i took my pants off now this would end a lot quicker then I wanted it to so I left those on. I took a moment to rearrange my dick in my pants so it didn't hurt as bad before grabbing the lube.

"Have you done this before?" Levi asked.

"Once," I told him. "With Armin back in highschool. Sex hasn't really been on my mind a whole lot to be honest." Seeing the wary look on his face I grabbed his leg, hiking it over my shoulder and kissing the inside of his knee. "Don't worry. I know enough to know what I'm doing. What about you?"

He furrowed his eyebrows. "Have I what?"

"Done this before."

He turned his head sharply to the side, sucking his teeth before admitting, "...No."

"I'll be careful."

"You better be."

I popped open the cap of the lube, smearing some on my fingers and rubbing them together to warm it up. Levi refused to look at me. When I pressed a finger against his entrance he tensed up.

"Relax," I said softly. "Look at me, Levi."

He slowly turned his head back to me. "What is it, brat?"

"I just want to see you."

I rubbed a little harder at him, just smearing lube over his hole to get him used to the feeling of something being there. When he finally relaxed I slowly pressed my finger in. I kept my eyes on his face watching for any signs of pain, but Levi only grimaced. I didn't move my finger at all, using my thumb to rub at his rim for a moment. When he stopped clenching around me I started to move, slowly to get him used to it.

"Is this supposed to feel good?" Levi scowled.

I rolled my eyes at him, "Just give me a moment."

I pressed another finger into him, and this time he tensed up. I kissed the inside of knee and whispered softly to him to get him to relax. When he finally did I pressed my fingers all the way inside of him. I didn't thrust into him quite yet. Instead I crooked my fingers.

Levi gasped, clenching down hard against me as he fisted the sheets in surprise. "God, damn it-."

"Feel good yet?" I teased. I didn't quite expect to find his prostate on the first try but seeing the look on his face made me glad I had.

He looked like he wanted to spit something back so I bent my fingers again, rubbing firmly at that spot. Levi melted in front of me, mouth opening wide and gasping for breath and eyes shutting tightly. I pressed a third finger into him before he had the chance to expect it and continued to rub at his prostate when his eyes flew open in shock. He shook underneath me, panting and moaning and looking like he was desperately trying to find his words. I moved my fingers into him, fucking him slowly and crooking them as they moved out of them. Slowly Levi's cock started to grow again, and I leaned down to lip a stripe from the base to the tip, swirling my tongue around his slit. It looked like that was too much for him, if his sudden shout meant anything. I sat back up and continued moving my fingers into him.

"E-Eren," he gasped. "B-Brat. Do something."

I pulled my fingers out, wiping them on the sheet before reaching for the condoms. Levi collapsed flat against the bed and breathed heavily. His fingers finally loosened their grip on the sheets. I undid my pants and struggled out of them, kicking them off the bed with a grunt. Levi kept his eyes closed tightly.

"Levi?" I said softly as I rolled the condom on. "Are you okay?"

"Shut up."

I raised an eyebrow at that and leaned over him, putting a hand to his face. "Are you scared?"

His eyes snapped open at that and he glared at me. "Fuck you, Jaeger."

I smiled down at him and kissed his forehead. "I'll be careful."

I grabbed the lube and coated myself liberally with it. Levi watched as I pulled both of his legs over my hips and shuffled myself closer to him. With one hand I aimed my dick towards his entrance. I bit my lip, barely thinking it over before I grabbed one of his hands with my spare one. I squeezed it gently and smiled at him.

"Are you ready?"

Levi only nodded.

I took a deep breath and pressed myself into him. The head of my cock slipping in and both Levi and I gasped, his hand gripping mine a little tighter in response. I watched his face carefully looking for any sign that he was in pain or uncomfortable. When I was about halfway in he pressed a hand against my chest and hissed. I stopped immediately and placed a hand on his cheek.

"Do you want to stop?" I asked.

He glared at me and shook his head. "No, no. It just feels like I need to shit. Give me a moment."

I rolled my eyes at that, taking my hand off his face to cradle the back of his neck and his kiss forehead. It was killing me not to push farther into him. He was so hot and tight around me it made it hard for me to breathe. I could feel my legs tremble in an effort to keep myself from fucking into him. He let out a shaky breath at that before nudging his hips closer to me. I took the hint and gently pushed myself inside him completely.

I let out a breath, trying to ignore the urge to just thrust into him. He nodded at me after a moment. Angling my hips upward I gently started thrusting myself into him, keeping it soft and slow. He gasped and clenched around me, fingers tightening in mine and I stopped immediately.

"That," he shook his head frantically. "No, that didn't mean stop."

Oh. _Oh._

I kept the angle and continued, grabbing his cock with my free hand to stroke him in time with my thrusts. His eyes widened and he choked on a moan. Seeing the face he made had me moaning in turn, thrusting into him harder.

Levi's hand stopped gripping at the sheets to grab a hold of my shoulder. He yanked me down, kissing me hard, before pulling back and moaning, "Do that again."

I moaned, burying my head into his neck and fucking into a little harder and faster. He grunted below me, groaning my name and scratching at my back. I kept one of his hands tightly in mine not wanting to let him go. I gripped the sheets beside his head and moaned into his neck. I didn't know something like this could feel so good.

"Eren," Levi gasped. "More. _Please._ "

I bit into his shoulder and moved faster, harder, trying to pry all the noises out of Levi as much as I could. He arched into me and let out something that sounded almost like a sob, crying out with every thrust. I had no doubt that we might be keeping people up. At this point though I could hardly care.

I came before Levi did, slamming into him and shouting into his neck. He panted against me, squirming underneath my frame and begging for me to do something. Still a little lightheaded I sunk my fingers into him and fucking into his prostate as fast and hard as I could. Levi screamed and shook against me, fingers clawing at my arms and back. I didn't even have to touch his cock before he was cumming, breath hitching and shaking in my arms.

We stayed like that for a while, me hovering over him while he tried to catch his breath. Neither of us had the energy to move quite yet. Eventually I rolled off of him and fell beside him.

Levi grimaced, trailing his fingers over the mess on his stomach. He scowled at me. "I need a washcloth."

I pried myself off of the bed, pulling off the condom and dumping it in the trash. I walked into the bathroom and wet down a cloth. When I walked back into the room Levi was fast asleep. I wiped him off as gently as I could as to not wake him up before crawling in bed next to him.

It was almost hard to believe that one person could make me feel like maybe I would be alright in this world.


	14. IMPORTANT FOR ALL MY READERS PLS READ

Hey guys! I have no idea how many of you still follow me or even remember me, I'm that person who is super shitty at uploading -thumbs up-

I no longer use this account, as many of you have probably realized if you do still check from time to time. I've moved completely over to Archive Of Our Own. Their site is a lot easier for me to use and just looks nicer when reading? My opinion anyways. My account on there is /users/neadevar if you wanted to stop by and check out the new things I've written this past year (?) that I haven't posted here. There's lots of smut, some fluff, gotten into Voltron recently so a few pieces for that fandom.

I'll keep this account up just because I know there are people who still prefer this site and I want my works to be available to them, however I will not be uploading any new content here. Thank you all for reading and supporting me! It means so much!

Bye!


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